


Brevity

by liliums



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: AU, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Angst, Drama, Fluff, M/M, kinda long, levyaku - Freeform, yakulev - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-19
Updated: 2017-02-25
Packaged: 2018-07-12 00:35:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 67,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7077172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liliums/pseuds/liliums
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yaku Morisuke had decided to give up on having love as one of his life's priorities. Everything seemed to tell him that he was doomed to end up a single eternal nerd that wore geeky shirts and equally as geeky underwear.</p><p>That was until some weird, tall emo guy appeared in his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I apologize for the length, I got a bit carried away with this fic and well... yeah
> 
> I hope you like it anyway!

He had been working in there for such a long time that he almost felt no need to try to ignore the smell of old coffee and cigarettes. He would only raise from his seat when he had to go use the toilet, get food or to get more mugs of coffee, although he had seriously been pondering about installing a mini-bar fridge and buying a coffee machine to put in that room. His workmates had, however, severely discouraged him of doing so, since he had to get out of the dark, dusty pit that was his room every once in a while and the coffee/food journeys to the office’s kitchen would do more than enough to help Yaku Morisuke’s blood circulation to function normally.  
  
Nothing really mattered to Yaku other than the fact that the deadline was approaching and he still hadn’t finished reading one of his client’s books. It wasn’t because he had other books to review at the same time, since usually he managed to organize his schedule in a way that he would be able of working with every single client in an articulate way. However, that client was particularly nerve-wracking. Not only was their book dense, but it was filled with messy side plots, unfinished ideas and dead ends that would make no sense in the story. The worst part was that the author very often forgot to mention characters’ names so Yaku would be forced to call them at least 3 times a day just for clarification, but eventually, since the mistakes and chaotic ideas would only increase as he advanced through the story, they settled to instant messaging devices. He now regretted taking that client. He was a new author and that book would be his debut, when he read the plot and the first few pages of the story Yaku felt immediately intrigued and drawn in to it since, at first glance, they seemed to have some pretty interesting ideas and his writing style was, in a positive sense, peculiar.  
  
But now he wasn’t sure if that was a positive feature anymore.  
  
As he was flipping through another page of the book, eyes nearly closed from the lack of rest they had been getting, he heard someone twisting the not-so-quiet doorknob and stepping into his office.  
  
“Yaku the chief’s asking about that Ushijima book.” A voice, who sounded equally as exhausted as he was, said in a monotonous tone.  
  
“Desk. Second drawer.” Yaku simply said as he tried to focus on yet another non-sensical phrase he had stumbled upon, stopping a loud sigh from coming out of his lips.  
  
His workmate managed to get the brown envelope out of said drawer and checked its inside.  
  
“Thanks.” he said while walking back to the door. “By the way, are you staying in late again today?”  
  
“Unfortunately.” this time the sigh managed to escape, but he was too tired to care about his manners. Besides everyone in the office knew what he was dealing with anyway.  
  
“Same here. We were thinking about getting some food from the convenience store, do you want us to bring you something?”  
  
Yaku raised his eyes from the book and pulled his glasses to the top of his head, looking at the dark haired man near the door and smiling as much as he could with his tiredness, humming.  
  
“That’d be nice, thanks Akaashi.”  
  
Akaashi beamed a soft smile and pulled the envelope against his chest, reaching out for the doorknob and opening the door again. “You’re welcome. Keep up the good work.”  
  
Upon hearing his door closing, Yaku decided that he should take at least a cigarette break. His eyes were almost twisting from staring at dark letters in white background for too long and since it had been at least three hours from his last break, Yaku got up and opened the room’s window. Taking a cigarette out of its pack, he leaned closer to the said window and took a deep breath, enjoying the cool end of day breeze that was rushing into his room. He was extremely thankful for being close with his boss, otherwise he wouldn’t be able of smoking inside his own office and would have to go through the troublesome and time-wasting process of heading to the building’s entrance just to have a smoke. While lighting up his cigarette, he felt extremely thankful for his boss not installing a smoke detector in the room, although that was illegal. His dark brown eyes travelled downwards, looking at the top of random people’s heads as they passed by the building. He couldn’t help but stare at a young couple walking with a child, his mother’s voice warning him about marriage and such things re-appearing in his mind.  
  
Yaku Morisuke didn’t do relationships. Not because he didn’t want to, but because apparently all the odds were against the success of his love life. His last girlfriend (a lovely British artist that had moved to Tokyo in search for inspiration) dumped him after not being able of seeing him for a week, and the culprit of that had been Yaku’s work. It was during the time when he was reviewing what would be one of the best-selling books he had ever helped producing, and being the perfectionist that he is, he devoted himself to that book so intensely that his girlfriend even wondered if he was actually sick in the head. But that wasn’t the case, or at least he thought so. Yaku just loved his job. He loved reading the first drafts that authors would send in, the finished but not yet perfect version of the book, the variety of stories and worlds that human minds were able of making. Maybe he was actually sick in the head for being so obsessed with such things. But he had been that way ever since he was a kid, passionate about literature.  
  
Especially fantasy literature.  
  
As he was about to finish his cigarette, he suddenly heard his door slamming open, making him nearly drop it.  
  
“Kuroo jesus fucking christ-“ Yaku complained, pressing his cigarette against the ashtray and looking at the tall young man that was entering his office.  
  
“Akaashi just told me that you were going to eat convenience store shit tonight.” The dark haired man inevitably glanced at the mess of papers on top of Yaku’s desk and clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “And there’s no way that I’m letting my best friend eat poorly again on this beautiful Summer’s night.”  
  
Yaku just sighed, “Since when did I become your best friend?”  
  
“Since Kenma dumped me to work on some stupid nerdy book.” Kuroo, who was at least 20 something centimeters taller than Yaku, bumped his head against the lamp that was hanging on the ceiling and clicked his tongue.  
  
“Sometimes I wonder how did you even manage to own this company.” The smaller shook his head and walked back towards his desk, pretending not to notice the other hitting against his lamp.  
  
“Because I’m a genius CEO and I love helping my friends out.” Kuroo moved to sit on the edge of the desk, not even noticing that his behind landed exactly on top of one of Yaku’s sheets. “So what do you say? Let’s go out for some Chinese food and then grab a couple of drinks.”  
  
“I have a deadline coming soon.” Yaku said firmly while trying to get the sheet that was underneath Kuroo without ripping it.  
  
“So? Technically I was the one that gave you the deadline so if I’m asking you to go out with me it’s because I know you’re gonna do it in time.” He had that annoying cocky smile that Yaku always despised on him, it was the kind of smile that showed clearly how rich and powerful Kuroo was, how he always managed to get what he wanted with a couple of sweet words and a sly smile. It disgusted him how easily he could get what he wanted, without even having to work hard.  
  
But on the other hand, Chinese food really sounded good for Yaku. He hadn’t been able of eating something that weren’t sandwiches and other unhealthy foods he would get from the convenience store.  
  
“… fine, but you’re paying for it.” He finally gave in, standing from his chair and grabbing his jacket.  
  
The tall man snickered and patted his shoulder, “Sure thing, I was thinking about doing it either way.”  
  
Yaku rolled his eyes and walked towards the entrance of his office, wondering if he should warn Akaashi about not needing the convenience store food. But since Kuroo was walking quickly towards the office’s exit, he figured that maybe he should just text his workmate and let him know about the whole situation.

 

* * *

 

“So, what’s the book you’re working on anyway?” Kuroo asked without taking his eyes from the dumplings in front of him.  
  
“Hmm.” Yaku chewed on the meat filled dumpling he head inside his mouth quickly and cleared his throat. “It’s from that Kageyama guy.”  
  
“Oh the one with those weird wizards or something?” He wasn’t actually interested, Yaku thought, he was just trying to sound like it because their relationship wasn’t that close for them to talk about other things other than work.  
  
“Mages, yeah.” Morisuke mumbled and took a large swig of his beer, he really had missed having a meal like that.  
  
“Dude I mean, I support what you guys do but like. Why those nerdy books? Why not romance or crime stuff? They’re so much easier to read and they always sell well.” Yaku fought the urge to roll his eyes at the other’s statement. He knew that Kuroo was not a big fan of fantasy books, in fact he didn’t even know if Kuroo was interested in reading at all. He only appeared in the picture because Yaku and Kenma needed someone to help them creating their book publishing company and since he had management skills (and the money) they decided to let him be the owner. But Kuroo’s lack of interest in what his company did really bugged Yaku. The other continued speaking however, “Plus it would totally bring more female authors into signing up with us.”  
  
“We have a few female clients though.” Yaku said monotonously. “I mean one of our best-selling books was even written by a wom—"  
  
“Yeah but you know what I mean.” Kuroo interrupted him quickly, picking another dumpling with his chopsticks and examining it. “I’m just thinking in a more practical point of view, if you reviewed books from other genres you would certainly get better payment.”  
  
Yaku took a deep breath and made himself remember that the man in front of him was his boss, he couldn’t speak his mind with total freedom, despite them being somewhat friends. “That was not why Kenma and I wanted to start this company. We wanted to focus on f-"  
  
“Fantasy and science fiction, I know.” Kuroo was seriously starting to seriously annoy him with his constant interrupting. “I mean I just wanna help you guys, in my opinion we should start accepting other genres.  
  
Kuroo was right in what he was saying, but that didn’t mean that Yaku agreed with it. Actually it would very much please Yaku by the end of the month to get a bigger check, but by opening the company to new book genres would be against the principles that started it in the first place. Him and Kenma, by loving fantasy and science fiction, had decided to create their own publishing company with a main focus on those two genres, just to support all those authors who wanted to write stories of that sort but would always get turned down by other publishing houses, since most of the time they preferred other less nerdy genres, to put it simply. So as much as his own greed was actually jumping from excitement for the prospect of getting more money, his moral disciplined it and tossed it back to the pits of Yaku’s mind, he couldn’t be the kind of person that would be easily bought with money.  
  
“I don’t think that will ever happen while Kenma and I are still working there.” Yaku said before shoving another dumpling inside his mouth.  
  
Kuroo chuckled softly and leaned his head against his hand, looking at the smaller amusingly. “Oh I know, that’s why I admire you two so much.”  
  
He rolled his eyes as he heard his boss saying that and swallowed the food inside his mouth, the dumplings that had once tasted juicy and delicious now seemed sour.

 

* * *

  

He settled down on one of the bar’s chairs and looked at the large glass of beer in front of him. By the looks of it, it seemed like Yaku was going to spend the whole night drinking with Kuroo and he wouldn’t be able of getting anything else done. His friend arrived with his own glass of beer and sat in front of him, a sideways smirk planted on his lips. Yaku wanted to punch him.  
  
“What.” He simply said, taking a short sip of his beer.  
  
“Nothing, I’m just glad you agreed on coming here with me.” Kuroo responded with a low chuckle, then looking around the room while drinking. “Damn this is packed tonight, I wonder if there’s something happening here.”  
  
“It’s Friday.” Yaku said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Which kinda was.  
  
“Hm I guess that makes sense then.” He didn’t know if Kuroo was purposely acting like that to make conversation easier or if he was just oblivious to everything happening around him. But knowing Kuroo for at least 10 years, Yaku was almost sure that it was the first one.  
  
However, even if it was Friday the bar was filling up more than usual, and it was as a mass of people started moving towards the small stage by the end of the room that Yaku realized that something might actually be happening. Kuroo had one of his brows arched as he raised himself from his seat, glancing at the stage and noticing a group of young men walking on it.  
  
“I think there’s gonna be a concert or something.” He said, his low pitched voice speaking in a louder tone now that the crowd had started making noise.  
  
From his angle, all Yaku could see were a bunch of heads and in the distance a single, white-ish haired one that seemed to be on stage. His lips parted when he was about to say something, but before he could do it loud guitars and drums started filling up the whole room, and he closed his mouth immediately. Kuroo must have noticed it because he could almost swear that he had heard his annoying laughter.  
  
“Wanna go check them out?” Kuroo said loudly while leaning closer to the smaller, his breath smelling like beer and the peanuts he had been eating while ordering his drink.  
  
Yaku shrugged a response and quickly drank the rest of his beer, then getting up from his seat and waiting for his taller friend to follow him to the crowd. It was difficult for him to get closer to the stage, since he was, well, short and the room was filled with dancing and head bobbing people that had their eyes focused on what was happening on stage. Kuroo, on the other hand, seemed to have it pretty easy, since he not only made his way through the crowd but he had managed to get the attention of a few girls who kept checking him out. But that was a regular day in the life of Kuroo Tetsurou. Compared to the dark haired, high-fashion-model tall young man, Yaku looked like a kid that had just started his first year in high school. So it was easy to tell that in many ways, Morisuke envied his boss.  
  
“I think they’re called Tolstoi or something.” Kuroo once again said against his ear, loud enough for Yaku to wince.  
  
“Yeah?” He simply said, glancing at his friend and finally stopping once the crowd became to dense for them to walk through. He looked up at the stage and saw the same white hair he had seen a while ago, and its owner was the singer of the band. His voice had a strange boyish tone but it was overall quite pleasing to listen too along with the harsh noises coming from the instruments.  
  
“Fuck that guy’s fucking huge! I thought he was standing on a box or something.” Kuroo said, loud enough for two girls that were standing in front of them to look at him. But he was right, the lead singer did look like he was almost 2 meters tall and Yaku once more became self-conscious about his own height.  
  
The band was surprisingly good. Although they had started in a pretty rough and heavy-metal-ish tone, they then started to play less aggressive songs that actually matched the singer’s tone better. And despite all the stress, the deadline, the broken grammar of the young author, Yaku was finally having fun. He found himself starting to dance along to the band, not even noticing that Kuroo had managed to pick up some random girl and getting out of the bar. It took him at least 10 minutes for him to notice his disappearance, and as he checked his phone he saw that Kuroo had sent him a text saying how he had gotten lucky and how he had gone home with that same girl. Yaku didn’t need to read the rest of the message, he just shoved his phone inside his pocket and tried to get back to the same good and easy going feeling he had a few minutes ago. And for a while he managed to recover it, glueing his eyes on the lead singer (which was pretty much all he could see from that distance) and letting his body get loose again. But it wasn’t the same thing. Kuroo had once again managed to get everything that he wanted without having at least a little consideration for him. That pissed Yaku so much that he once again started wondering why he would even consider him his friend.  
  
In the past, him and Kuroo had gotten in a few fights which resulted in the awkward superficial friendship that they had nowadays. They had met when Kenma brought him to one of their study sessions, introducing him to Yaku as a childhood friend. He even wondered how someone like Kenma would even put up with Kuroo, knowing how their personalities were pretty much opposites and how Kenma was more of the kind of man to spend the whole night in playing videogames and not going out and hooking up with random girls at bars like his best friend did. In Kenma’s 21st birthday, they all met up to have dinner in the birthday boy’s dorm but Kuroo, being the over the top rich guy he always was, managed to organize a surprise party with at least 100 guests in a club. Needless was to say that Kenma did not approve of the party, not only because he was not a big fan of clubs but because he only knew 10% of the people attending the party. To Yaku that party was only a way of Kuroo showing off and of getting an excuse to get drunk and laid the whole night, which only showed how selfish and self-centered he actually was. He expected Kenma to get mad, but instead he just went home and told Yaku that it would be meaningless to make a big problem out of it, he was used to Kuroo being like that and it did not bother him. But it bothered Yaku, and after Kenma left the club he went to look for Kuroo and made sure to let him know of everything he thought about him. And all those things were said in the form of a clean yet strong punch thrown right on the taller’s cheek, which Yaku still has no idea how he managed to do. The result, as obvious as it can be, was the two young men starting a fist fight in the middle of the club’s dance floor and being forced to leave the club before the party was even over. When Kenma found out about the fight needless is to say that he was not impressed with neither of them, but all he told the boys was that as long as he wouldn't be dragged into the fight that he didn’t care if they were planning each other’s deaths. Yaku, being the goody two shoes he had always been, decided to apologize to Kuroo and to put it all behind their backs. And ever since then the two of them had been something that could be translated into a meaningless friendship.  
  
The concert was over before Yaku could manage to get his mind focused on something else and before he would get even more mad he decided to leave the bar and just head home, the only thing in his mind was how a waste of time it had been to go out with Kuroo, how he was surely going to regret it the morning next day. Since the bar was packed, it was pretty hard for him to find a way to the exit, which he only managed to do about 10 minutes after starting to walk towards it. And the strangely damp and warm feeling on the back of his shirt told him that someone might have managed to spill something on him. That night was clearly being a disaster.

 

* * *

   
Feeling the fresh, cool air from the night was somewhat close to the kind of happiness one would feel when coming back home after a long day at work. Yaku had never been more relieved of getting fresh air against his face than he did the moment he managed to get out of the bar. Near the door, he noticed a familiar face standing behind a table filled with CD’s talking to a young girl, while other people were surrounding them and buying some of them. Behind them there was a large sign that said:

 

TOLSTOI  
THE FIRST ALBUM ‘WAR AND PEACE’  
BUY NOW

 

Yaku smiled at how amateur looking the design of the sign looked but he still walked closer to the table, checking the CD’s and trying to get a reach of one. He stood right in front of the lead singer and he noticed how if he looked ahead all he would be able to see were the young man’s collarbones; the bitterness of being short filled his heart once more.  
  
“Did you like our performance?” He suddenly heard, and much to his surprise it came from the same young man in front of him.  
  
“Yeah I did.” Yaku said with a soft smile, moving his eyes away from the tracklist at the back of the CD. “You guys were pretty good.”  
  
“Thanks.” The guy smiled and it was then that Yaku realized that he was probably much younger than him, he still had some baby fat on his cheeks despite his height.  
  
Yaku noticed that, although many people were checking the CD’s, only a few would buy them. The other band members were diligently handing out flyers and saying ‘get our music on iTunes’ ‘follow us on soundcloud’. They all looked like they had just turned 20 or even less so Yaku couldn’t help but feel bad for the lack of attention they were getting. So, reaching out for his wallet on the back pocket of his jeans, Yaku looked at the lead singer and said. “How much is it?”  
  
“Oh?” The boy seemed to have been caught by surprise, his green eyes lighting up as soon as he realized what Yaku was talking about. “It’s 1050 yen.”  
  
It seemed quite cheap, but he figured that maybe it was because they were just starting and that the album had had a low budged. He handed the money to the tall boy, who mumbled a gentle ‘thank you’ and grabbed a small plastic bag from under the table. The next 15 seconds that followed were awkward yet weirdly endearing, since Yaku didn’t really understand what the bag was for until the other reached out for the CD and the two of them spent a brief moments just chuckling at their lack of harmony.  
  
“Tell me what you thought about it after you’re done listening.” the singer said with an excited smile.  
  
“And how should I do that?” Yaku chuckled, not quite sure if what was going on was some sort of very subtle flirting or just a meaningless joke.  
  
“Well uh… we could exchange emails maybe?” to his surprise the younger boy seemed to be talking serious, and Yaku’s brows raised as he noticed how he was taking out a phone from his ripped jeans’ pocket. “I mean only if you want to of course.”  
  
He stood a few minutes just staring at the other’s phone before he realized that he should take his out too, his mind debating about the dangers of giving your email address to strangers but how the boy didn’t seem like some sort of pervert or psycho that would use his email for criminal stuff.  
  
“Y-yeah I do.” Yaku handed his phone to the other and took his phone in his hand, typing his email address on the screen before the two of them exchanged phones again. After another 20 seconds of awkward chuckles, Yaku finally decided that it was time to go home, since he had seen on his phone that it was past midnight and he had to go to work early the next morning.  
  
“So uh… we’ll talk soon then?” the boy said expectantly.  
  
“Yeah soon.”

 

* * *

 

“Fuck…” Yaku managed to drop some coffee on himself after he went to fill it up in the office’s kitchen. The after effects of going out with Kuroo were clearly starting to show and he hated himself for ever agreeing on it. Working on Saturdays was indeed something he hated a lot. After wiping the mess with a couple of tissues, he walked towards his room with his now stained shirt and sat before the mess of papers that he had left there the day before. As he saw the same sentence that managed to piss him off a long sigh escaped his lips, the reaching out for his phone to send a text to the author.

His contact list appeared before his eyes and his drowsiness suddenly vanished upon seeing a contact with a strange foreign name, which he soon realized it belonged to the singer he had met the night before. Yaku remembered about the CD and how he was actually planning on listening to it while working so, without wasting much time, he turned on his computer, put on his headphones and shoved the CD in it while writing a text to the troublesome author. He couldn’t help but smile when he started hearing his vocals, writing the corrections on the draft with a bit more excitement than earlier, despite the smell of coffee that was coming from his shirt.  
  
The album was short, only having 10 songs, so before he could notice Yaku found himself listening to silence while he was working on the book. When he noticed he simply stared at the screen of his computer and wondered whether he should send a message to the boy to tell him his feedback or not, but he figured that since he was focused on something else that it would be better if he just listened to it later in order to really appreciate it. He never was a big fan of listening to music while working anyway, he always found more comfortable and space for thinking when there wasn’t anything being forced into his brain through his ears, either it being music or someone talking.  
  
Soon lunchtime came and he decided that he would listen to the album while eating so he could send a message to the young singer still in the afternoon. But as he was preparing his headphones again, he suddenly heard a knock on the door. There was only one person in that whole office who would knock on his door before entering: Kozume Kenma. Yaku pulled his headphones out of his head and walked towards the door, smiling softly when he saw the young man about his height with his dark hair tied on a small ponytail. There once was a time when he would dye his hair blond, but it was almost a crime to talk about it with him.  
  
“Hey.” Kenma said in his typical monochordic tone. “Are you busy?”  
  
“No not really. Come in.” He moved away from the door so the other could enter and then closed it again. “Need anything?”  
  
Kenma was the type of person that wouldn’t really ask anyone for anything, only if he was really in big trouble, but still Yaku would ask that same question whenever he would come visit him. It was always nice to talk to Kenma, he always knew what to say and, even if in terms of love life he was way worse than him, he was quite good at bringing Yaku’s mood back up after the various disasters that would happen in his social life.  
  
A soft smile appeared on Kenma’s lips, the kind that Yaku knew he would only do when he was with him. “Not really, I just came here to check up on you. I heard you’re the one taking care of that Kageyama book.”  
  
“Hmm yeah.” he chuckled softly and shrugged. “You know, it’s actually a really good and well thought idea but… it’s just so…”  
  
“All over the place. Yes I’ve read it.” A quiet snicker came out of Kenma’s lips and he looked at his friend. “Are you going to have lunch now?”  
  
“Yeah, wanna join me?” Yaku also knew that Kenma would never deny his invitations, no matter how inconvenient they might have been to him.

 

* * *

 

The two young men made their way to a small restaurant nearby the company’s building and ordered some food for them to eat, sipping on lemonade and iced tea while they waited for it. Kenma was the only friend Yaku had ever managed to keep. As a kid he was pretty sociable, but the friends he had soon drifted away when they all got into different schools. In high school, which was when his love for nerdy stuff started blooming, his circle of friends was mainly formed by the school’s top male students who were also, as one can imagine, nerds. It was only in college that he managed to meet Kozume Kenma and to actually form a bond that wouldn’t become loose with time. Being both literature students with a passion for nerdy stuff, Yaku and Kenma soon became close friends only a few days after they started their first year. Yaku’s ability of respecting Kenma’s introversion made him be one of the few people that were actually close to him. He still had no idea, however, Kuroo had managed to be part of that group too.  
  
“I heard you and Kuroo went out last night.” Kenma said while moving his mouth away from his straw.  
  
Yaku just sighed, “Yeah…”  
  
“I dunno if I should say this but… it relieves me that you two are not picking up fights anymore.” the dark haired man said while he looked around and sniffed the air discreetly. Yaku knew that that was his way of saying ‘I’m glad you two are getting along’ but if you were Kenma Kozume it would be impossible for you to show your emotions to other people. There were times when Yaku would actually wonder if Kenma had a social disorder that made him that way, but anyway it didn’t matter, he still enjoyed being his friend.  
  
“Yeah well… he sort of left me in a bar filled with people and went home with some girl.” the shorter of the two said, biting on the inside of his lip.  
  
“Nothing unusual.” both of them said at the same time, then snickering softly at their own private joke.  
  
“Did you have fun at least?” Kenma asked again, his eyes clearly becoming more lively when the waitress brings in their food.  
  
“I guess I kinda did. We saw this concert of this new band and they we’re pretty good.” Yaku hummed while grabbing his chopsticks. “I even bought their CD on my way out.”  
  
“Really? Were you listening to it when I came in?” Kenma had of course noticed Yaku wearing his headphones. He would always notice the littlest of things, even if they were the most insignificant details in some random person’s life.  
  
“I was only getting ready too.” Yaku smiled lopsidedly and started eating, noticing Kenma mirroring his smile.  
  
“Tell me if they’re any good later.”

 

* * *

 

The rest of the day had been particularly stressful for Yaku. The author managed to confuse him even more with his attempts of explaining the book’s content to him, but he still tried to finish as much work as he could until the end of the day.  
  
Entering his apartment, Yaku let out quite a loud sigh of relief and taking off his shoes. After taking a bath and putting on some more comfortable clothes, Yaku finally had the time to listen to the CD he had bought the day before without any distractions. As soon as the music started playing from the stereo, a small smile appeared on his lips and his fingers lightly tapped on one of his couch’s arms, reading the back of the CD for more information about the band. There wasn’t that much in it, however, only that they formed about a year ago and that they had released a couple of singles before finally coming up with that album.  
  
About half an hour later, he was finally done with the album and, although the songs were good, he wasn’t exactly impressed. It wasn’t anything out of the box or new, it was just a bunch of rock songs that had a predictable arrangement. The lyrics on the other hand were what caught Yaku’s attention. They didn’t focus about the typical songwriting subjects, but each one of them told a story about random people. They were interestingly written poems that seemed to come from someone who knew how to use their language in a beautiful way to even tell a tale of some miserable person. Yaku liked it. Yaku liked it a lot.  
  
His phone was only a few inches away from him so he easily picked it up with just a little stretching of his arm. He scrolled through his contacts until he found the boy’s email, then nervously typing, deleting, re-typing a message to tell him that he had listened to the whole album.  
  
Much to his surprise, a reply came only a few seconds later.

 

[ new message ] really? did you like it?  
[ new message ] wait no don’t tell me  
[ new message ] I wanna know what you think personally

 

Yaku was a bit taken aback by the messages he had gotten while he was trying to write his opinion into his phone, eventually erasing it all and just sending a shorter and simpler reply.

 

[ text ] I am telling you personally

 

[ new message ] yes but I didn’t mean like that!  
[ new message ] are you free tomorrow? let’s go meet up for lunch or something! I’m really curious about what you think and I wanna hear it all coming from you

 

Once more, the boy surprised him. He never thought that someone like the lead singer of an aspiring rock band would ever be interested in his opinion. Yaku knew nothing about music, if the boy started asking him about some bass-line or guitar solo he was sure that wouldn’t be able of saying anything appropriate. So instead, he hoped that by saying that he really liked the lyrics that he would manage to say his opinion without being stuck to ‘I liked it a lot’.  
  
Still, for him to ask him to meet up really seemed a bit strange all of the sudden. Yaku didn’t know the kid, he just had talked to him the day before and saw him perform, but other than that neither him or the kid had any idea of what each of them actually were. Maybe it would be a good idea to meet up with him for lunch, maybe they would get along and he would manage to make a new friend. In the end, if the two of them somehow got mad at each other they didn’t have to see each other ever again. It seemed quite simple.

 

[ text ] yeah I’m free tomorrow  
[ text ] where do you wanna meet up?

 

[ new message ] can we go to McDonald’s or something? I’ve been craving it for a while

 

Yaku smiled slightly. He wasn’t the biggest fan of fast food but for some reason he just couldn’t say no to the other, besides it would be cheaper than any other restaurant.

 

[ text ] yeah McDonald’s is fine

[ new message ] cool! let’s meet up at 12? on that McDonald’s near the station?

[ text ] yeah sure

[ new message ] cool cool! see you tomorrow then!

 

  
“At 12 on the McDonald’s near the station.” Yaku mumbled while staring at the ceiling.  
  
He had to admit. He was a bit excited.

 

* * *

  

It was almost 12 and there was no sign of the singer. Yaku wondered if he was one of those people that still thought the concept of ‘fashionably late’ was cool. As he turned his head to the fast food restaurant’s window to see if he had somehow managed to get in without seeing the other, Yaku took the chance to check on his outfit. On his normal daily life, a shirt and a pair of suit pants was the kind of attire he would wear, however he wasn’t exactly sure if he had made a good choice by wearing one of those outfits to the lunch date/meet-up/whatever that even was. He frowned at his lack of broad shoulders, who sadly were even less prominent because he was wearing a shirt that was sort of big on him. He hated how even if he wore clothes that matched his age he would always managed to look like a kid who was dressing up as his dad. Annoyed at that thought, Yaku buttoned up the second top button of his shirt and let out an almost inaudible growl.  
  
“Hey!” He jumped a bit, then turning his head only to see the guy he had been waiting for.  
  
“Hey.” Yaku said with a smile, trying to forget all the bad thoughts that had just been flooding his mind.  
  
“Sorry for being a bit late.” The taller was wearing a plain white shirt underneath a leather jacket, along with the same pair of ripped pants that he was wearing on that night. “I lost the subway and-"  
  
“It’s okay.” Yaku said reassuringly, then shoving one of his hands inside his pocket to reach for his wallet and opening the door for the restaurant. “Let’s go?”  
  
“Yeah let’s.” The taller walked in and Yaku followed suit.

 

* * *

 

He had no idea what was so fascinating about burgers, specially when they were made in such a soulless and factory-like way. But the younger seemed to be enjoying it, occasionally letting out quite hums of approval as he bit more into his sandwich.  
  
“So” he said, his mouth still full. “I think we should probably know each other’s names right?”  
  
Yaku chewed on his own food slowly and nodded, “True.”  
  
“Well I’m Haiba Lev.” the white haired male said with a smile, looking proud for having such a peculiar name.  
  
“Lev?” Yaku’s brows furrowed in confusion, wondering if the other had decided to give him his stage name instead of his real one.  
  
For a few seconds he pondered whether he should give his pen name as well.  
  
“I’m Russian.” his confusion vanished quickly when the other said that. “I mean, half Russian. From my mother’s side.”  
  
Oh… Yaku said in his mind, his brows raised and his eyes a bit wide upon realization.  
  
“Everything makes sense now right?” The younger laughed and wiped his mouth with a napkin. “My bandmates thought Tolstoi would be a cool name for the band since my first name is… well… Lev.”  
  
He honestly thought there was going to be something deeper than that. He thought that maybe that small group of young men had discovered the amazing talent of Lev Tolstoi and had gotten inspiration from a few of his books to write songs. But maybe that would be asking too much from young people, or at least that was what he thought. Yaku knew that although a lot of younger people liked reading probably as much as him, they would rarely be interested in the big classics of literature that he, along with fantasy stories, loved so much. He hoped that maybe that tall, exotic looking young man would be different, that he would somehow be similar to Yaku.  
  
He had no idea why though.  
  
He just wondered since when he had become such a condescending prick.  
  
“But anyway, what’s your name?” the excitement didn’t disappear from the younger’s face even if Yaku was pretty sure the vanishing of his own smile had been pretty visible.  
  
“Uh… Yaku Morisuke.” He shoved the remnants of his burger back into the wrapping and looked at the other. “But most people call me Yaku.”  
  
“Yaku.” Each syllable came out of the boy’s mouth in an exaggerate and slow way, making Yaku wonder if he was making fun of his name.  
  
“Hm yeah… Yaku.” He said, taking a sip of his coke.  
  
“It’s a cute name.” Lev’s smile grew wider and his eyes nearly closed, now that Yaku was able to see him closely he noticed how he had quite a peculiar face.  
  
And being called cute was one of the biggest pet peeves Yaku had.  
  
There was awkward silence that lasted for a few minutes before the singer spoke again, his voice never losing that overly excited tone, “So, what did you think about the album?”  
  
Yaku took a deep breath, “Well it was nice. I don’t really understand that much about music but I could tell that you guys are pretty good."  
  
“Was there anything you liked in particular?” As the other leaned closer he knew that he was probably expecting for Yaku to point out a certain guitar solo or a certain bass line, but he decided to say what he had planned to.  
  
“The lyrics are pretty nice.” He said, putting on a smile that he knew was probably even painful to see.  
  
“Ah yes yes.” The other crossed his arms and leaned back against his chair. “We have a friend that writes them for us. None of us is talented enough for that.”  
  
Yet another disappointment. He didn’t even know how he had managed to have his hopes up, to feel excited about meeting the singer as if they would be the most similar and compatible people in the world. They were, after all, quite young compared to Yaku and the lyrics of their songs seemed like they had been written by someone at least 10 years older than them. He suddenly dropped the idea that Tolstoi were going to have that much of a good career in the future.  
  
“But I’m glad you liked them.” Lev interrupted his own thoughts, his thin lips curled into a smile that seemed like it was never going to go away. “May I ask what do you do?”  
  
Yaku’s eyes blinked behind his glasses and he shrugged a response, “I work at a book publisher.”  
  
“Oh really? Wow that must be so cool” The boy stretched his back casually, the height of the chair was clearly not adequate for his size.  
  
“It has its perks.” Yaku mumbled before planning on finishing his drink.  
  
“What kind of books do you publish? Or… which ones are your favourites?”  
  
“We mostly do fantasy and sci-fi.” His voice nearly sounded like Kenma’s, monotonous and uninterested. For a moment he felt bad for sounding that rude.  
  
“Woah that’s really cool. But I bet you get a lot of work.” Lev was now taking off his leather jacket, revealing his not-as-slender-as-Yaku-expected arms and leaning his elbows on the plastic table.  
  
“Yeah just a bit.”  
  
Actually an awful lot.

 

* * *

 

Maybe they were just going to have a meal, but more plans were made as Lev suggested for them to take a walk in the park nearby. The sun was shining, no, it was fucking burning and the lack of wind wasn't helping the fact that Yaku was starting to regret wearing a long sleeved shirt. He was even starting to regret coming to that lunch. Lev, on the other hand, seemed like he was just a happy kid who had managed to convince his parents to take him out to play in such hot weather. His jacket was tied around his waist and Yaku started to envy his ripped jeans, since he was sure that they would provide his legs some ventilation.  
  
They eventually stopped walking when they found a bench underneath one of the trees. Yaku tried not to run towards it in order not to look that desperate, but when he finally sat down he made sure to let out a sigh loud enough for everyone around him to hear.  
  
Lev chuckled, “That tired?”  
  
“Yeah… it’s really hot today.” Yaku mumbled, unbuttoning one of the buttons of his shirt.  
  
“It is, I suppose you’re not a big fan of the Summer.” the taller leaned back against the wooden bench and looked around.  
  
"No not really." the frugality of their conversation annoyed him in a very deep level, talking about the weather was simply one of those things that Yaku just couldn't stand.  
  
"So..." The other must have noticed how the conversation wasn't actually going anywhere, since he simply looked at the smaller with a nervous smile and rubbed the back of his head. "You like science fiction?"  
  
Yaku sighed softly, at least Lev was trying, "Yeah I do. But I like fantasy more."  
  
"Oh like... Lord of the Rings and stuff like that? That's cool, I've watched all the movies." He said it in that same proud tone, as if he was the only one in the whole world who had watched those movies. "I never read the books though. I don't think I've ever read any fantastic novels or anything like that."  
  
Once more, Yaku was not surprised. The boy was starting to resemble Kuroo a bit too much, with his apparent lack of interest in literature and his determination of keeping a civil conversation with him. And he wasn't sure if that was a good thing.  
  
"And uh... have you ever tried writing something?" As the other asked him that, although he knew it came out of pure curiosity, Yaku's fists tightened the grip on his pants. Yes, yes he had written something. Yes he had worked very hard on it. But it brought back memories and wounds that he did not want to resurface.  
  
"Just a few things." He mumbled, half telling the truth and half lying. He just hoped that the other wouldn't ask to  
  
"Can I read them someday?" Of course he was going to ask that, no normal person would ever ask if someone did something and not be curious about it.  
  
Yaku chuckled lightly, "They're not very good."  
  
"I bet they are." Lev's enthusiasm was starting to sound a little fake for him, but he decided not to mind it. "Since you listened to my band's album and gave your opinion on it I think it's only fair if I do the same thing with your stories."  
  
Did he really tell his opinion about the album? He wasn't so sure anymore. However, he had to admit that what the other was saying sounded quite tempting. He had never shown any of his writing to someone else rather than Kenma, he always thought that was too personal to show to any of his other friends and he had never had the guts of sending it to a random publisher.  
  
"Hmm I'll think about it." Yaku smiled slightly and moved his eyes to the pavement, he really wanted to send what he had written but he did not want to seem like he was that easily convinced.  
  
"Okay then." Lev beamed another smile and nudged the shorter gently. Yaku wasn't sure why, but there was something in the other that didn't make him want to back off when he tried to get closer to him. He would never get that kind of interest from anyone, specially not from men, so he couldn't help but feel at least a little bit confused. "I'll be looking forward to it."

 

* * *

 

" _So you gave him your book._ " Kenma said, clearly unamused, from the other side of the line.

"I gave him the pdf file of it yes." Yaku tried not to burn the meat he was trying to fry on the pan while talking on the phone. "I dunno, he seems like a good kid and since I gave him my opinion on his album I think it's only fair if I let him read my book."

" _Don't bullshit me Yaku._ " Although that was quite of an aggressive thing to say, Kenma said it as calmly as if he was talking about the weather. " _You gave the book to the kid because you want someone to read it._ "

Morisuke pursed his lips together. He hated how well the other could read him, how he always knew what Yaku actually meant between the lines. It was true, Yaku just wanted someone else to read his book and give an honest opinion on it. He expected the same thing when he showed it to Kenma, which had said what would be the harshest thing Yaku had ever heard his whole life:

 _It's good, but it's too safe_. 

To Yaku that basically meant that he had written just another book, that it wasn't something special and that would probably never be published under their company. The fact that someone as close to him as Kenma had said something like that only showed how Yaku didn't have, after all, any talent for writing at all.

So maybe he just didn't want an honest opinion but only a positive one. Deep inside he knew that Lev probably wouldn't criticize it properly, after all Kenma had a degree on literature and as far as he knew the singer's knowledge in literature was probably consisted of the books he had to read in high school (that is if he even read them) and magazines. He knew that the feedback that Lev would give would mean nothing compared to Kenma's honest opinion, but he just wanted to have his ego boosted. To have his confidence raising once again after feeling down for such a long time. _I really am a shitty person_ , Yaku thought as he flipped a few pieces of meat.

"I just wanna know what someone else would think about it." Yaku admitted, knowing very well that Kenma was probably very disappointed on him.

" _Hmm do whatever you want then._ " The other said, then clearing his throat. " _I gotta go now, I got a friend coming over._ "

"Okay, see you tomorrow then."

" _See you._ "

Once the call was over Yaku felt like hiding himself away from the shame he felt. Even if Lev had no idea of what was going on, Kenma would still know about his true intentions and he was sure that, although he would not show it on the outside, that he would be judging him. Kenma was like that. He preferred not to show his anger, his disappointment, his problems to others because he had learned to keep them safe and private. But everyone, at least those that were close to him, would know when Kenma was upset at them because the usual monotonous voice would be even more unexpressive and the replies even shorter.

It was too late to do anything about it however, the book had already been sent and, by the constant beeping he had heard while he was talking to Kenma, Lev was probably reading it already. After turning off the stove, he opened the messages he had gotten to see what he had sent.

 

[ new message ] thank you so much for hanging out with me! I had fun  
[ new message ] also thank you for sending me the book, I'll start reading it after band practice

 

He noticed how he had not waited for Yaku's reply, sending another bunch of texts.

 

[ new message ] I couldn't wait so I started reading it already ^^;  so far I'm loving it! It seems so cool  
[ new message ] also would you be up to meeting up again? we could go to an amusement park or something  
[ new message ] actually I got these tickets for this water park outside of the city and I was thinking we could go together 

Yaku nearly choked on his own spit when he saw what the other said. He had never been or ever thought about going to a water park, specially not with someone that he barely knew. Strangely there was a small voice in his head that said that he could give it a try, the boy had managed to get the tickets so it would be a waste not to use them. However it did bother him that he would most certainly have to be half naked for a whole day. He wished that he was different, that he wouldn’t be so short and small and that he for once looked like his age. A constant thought in his mind was how he would one day have gray hair and he would still look like a boy. It wouldn’t be quite a nice sight to see.

  
[ text ] yeah sure we could go there

  
What was he even doing.

 

[ new message ] really? Cool! Can I pick you up next Saturday at 9am?

  
[ text] yeah sure

  
_Oh god_.

 

* * *

 

The morning next day Yaku was back at the same book. The usual pile of empty coffee mugs was already taking form around the sheets of paper he was reading and, unfortunately, he still hadn’t got the time to have a smoke. The deadline would be in three days and he had just reached half of the dense book, he knew that he would have to ask for more time but at least Kuroo himself had said that it was okay for him. He just hoped that he could keep his word.  
  
Kenma didn’t come to visit his office that day, making him wonder that maybe he was too busy with his own work too. But deep inside he knew that there was more to it and that it would take a while before they would be able to talk as they used to. As much as he didn’t want to feel bothered and as much as he was used to it, Yaku was still bothered and he still didn’t want to be used to being ignored by Kenma. Whenever something like this would happen, Yaku would always feel the urge to talk about it with someone else, but he just didn’t have anyone else. To talk about those things to Kuroo would be impossible, he just knew that he wouldn’t be taken seriously. The other closest person he had was Akaashi but the two weren’t that close to have that kind of conversation. But technically now he had someone else.  
  
He picked up his phone and checked if he had gotten any messages from him, but since it was still early in the morning. Yaku opened their conversation and prepared himself to type, his mind rushing with thought of why he shouldn’t do it and why he should.

  
[ text ] hey wanna grab some coffee later?

  
What was he even doing.

  
[ new message ] sure! When?

  
Apparently the younger was awake, much to his surprise.

  
[ text ] maybe at 6 or something? I can’t get off work earlier than that

  
[ new message ] sure! Want me to pick you up or something?

  
He sighed and rubbed his eyes with two of his fingers.

  
[ text ] yeah sure

 

* * *

 

Kuroo was considered by everyone a man child. He didn’t mind that, even if there was much more to him than that. The truth was that he wore that assumption as a shield, if everyone around him thought that he was someone like that then they would not bother about getting to know him. However there was one person that knew the truth and that was Kozume Kenma. The two had been friends ever since they were kids, since they both went to the same school and attended the same music academy. When they met in school for the first time they did not get along at all. Kuroo was a loud, proud, cocky rich kid that gathered everyone’s attention by bragging about his possessions. He had always been a people’s person and he always loved getting noticed by others. Kenma on the other hand seemed to always had been the opposite. He was quiet and reserved, didn’t like to talk before others unless he really had to. But Kuroo... Kuroo loved to be noticed, he loved to have people talking to him even if he barely knew them. To many that was something to admire, to others it was just something to be annoyed of, for being so typical for a spoiled rich kid like him to be. But still, Kenma didn't seem to think that way.

Or at least if he did he wouldn't tell it to his face.

But he knew that Kenma was not that type of person.

After having a long meeting with an author that wanted to get his book published in his company - was it even his? he always felt like it belonged more to Kenma and Yaku more than to himself but - he grabbed his jacket and walked out of the building. Usually he would leave his job as soon as he could, the other employees would still be battling with their work and Kuroo would just simply step out of the building after a cheery 'goodbye' or a 'see you tomorrow'. He knew that many of them actually hated his guts, but he didn't care. Or at least he wanted them to think that he didn't. From all the workers, the only one that never had a problem with speaking his mind was Yaku Morisuke, but it seemed that he had always had a problem with Kuroo. He remembered vividly the sharp feeling of the other's reasonably smaller fist hitting against his cheek once in the past, all the yelling he had gotten from him because he was inconsiderate or rude or whatever the guy would think about calling him. Despite that, Kuroo still wanted to keep Yaku close. He knew that with Yaku nearby that he would always manage to get work done and, the most important part, would have someone who would protect Kenma. If the latter knew about these thoughts, Kuroo would certainly earn a scornful glare and a long, uncomfortable silence that would just tell him how Kenma didn't need anyone to protect him. But he knew that it wasn't exactly true, even if Kenma was already 26 years old Kuroo had always felt a strange brotherly protection towards him. He couldn't help it, he just didn't want anything bad to happen to him.

Tetsurou took a deep breath as soon as he stepped out of the publisher's building, then looking around to remind himself where he had parked his car and, as soon as he turned his face to the right, finding something truly interesting. The one and only Yaku Morisuke seemed to be talking to a weirdly tall kid only a few meters away from him, after exchanging a few words they suddenly started walking away. The usual smirk that would piss Yaku off appeared on his lips once he recognized who the tall boy was.

"Yaku..." He mumbled before finally walking towards his black BMW.

 

* * *

 

"So, how was work?"

Yaku couldn't believe that he was actually hanging out with Lev after work. He wanted to believe that it was because he wanted to know what the other was thinking about his book, but deep inside he could tell that there was something else. He still felt a bit embarrassed of being with a guy like him in a public place, not because of his appearance, but because the two of them seemed to be from two different worlds. Yaku was a small, geeky, clean-cut young man. While Lev on the other hand looked like he was taken from a modeling agency's pictorial. He could feel the eyes of everyone in the room focusing on the taller, and he understood why. Despite his strange, sharp features, Lev was the type of guy that would draw everyone's attention simply by existing, unlike Kuroo who had to do it by being loud.

"Oh it was... normal." Yaku replied to the other after sipping on his cup of cappuccino, that apparently needed a bit more of sugar.

"Did you read anything cool?" The other had already drank half of his iced tea while he waited for a good excuse to talk to Yaku.

"Not really... just the same book as usual." He had said that in an unamused tone, but when he saw how expectant the light haired man looked he thought that maybe he should say something else. A smile appeared on his lips, "You see, there's this author that sent his 1000 something page book and the story is pretty cool, but the guy doesn't seem to grasp the concept of grammar or sense really, everything is just so chaotic."

"Really? That sounds like a book publisher's nightmare." This time Lev was smiling with his eyes too, Yaku wondered why he hadn't noticed until then how handsome he looked when he did.

"It really is." The darker haired male nodded and added some more sugar to his drink, then pressing his lips together. "What about you? How was your day?"

The wide smile faded away from the tall guy's features and he moved his eyes to the table. "It was okay. Slept until late, had practice and... went to your workplace."

"I see." The sudden change of tone confused Yaku, but he had no idea what to do about it. "So uh... did you always want to be a rockstar?"

Suddenly, a loud chuckle came out of Lev's lips and he shook his head, "No not really, when I was a kid I wanted to be a vet."

"Didn't we all." He mirrored his smile and took another sip of his drink.

"Yeah..." Lev shifted on his seat and took a deep breath. "But I guess it all started when I was in high school, there was this guy from my class who had his ears pierced and his hair dyed in a crazy colour and one day he asked me if I wanted to go to his band practice. So... I went and I was like... mind-blown by their lead singer. She was like this really short girl with really long hair and I just thought she was the most amazing thing in the world." At that moment Lev's eyes twinkled, as if he was talking about an old lover. Yaku pursed his lips together but let the other continue his story, "But she had to move to another town so the band was in need of a singer and tadah~ i just happened to sing well and to be there so they asked me to join and thus Tolstoi were made."

He didn't think that Lev would be the kind of person that would use a world like 'thus'.

But he still smiled and nodded, "It must be fun though, having a band and all that. Do you go to college too?"

"Hm no I don't." Lev once more looked serious, Yaku felt a bit uncomfortable. "Even if I wanted to my parents would refuse to pay my fees so... I would have to work my ass off and I don't really think that it would be a good idea. Besides I don't even know what I would like to study." The taller let out a soft chuckle that sounded anything but honest, it was a bit unsettling.

"Well you could study to become a vet." Yaku nearly sighed in relief when he saw that the other chuckled once more, but this time in a natural way.

"I'm not sure that would work, I was never good at studying so."

The conversation died for a few minutes, both the young men were sipping on their respective drinks and looking around the room as if they would get an idea of what to talk about next. That short talk had, however, unveiled quite a lot of interesting information about Lev. Yaku wasn't exactly sure, but he had the feeling that Lev was hiding something behind all the smiles and chuckles, something that made him uncomfortable and uneasy. But Yaku knew that he shouldn't butt in other people's lives like that, specially when they barely knew each other.

"Did you go to college?" Lev suddenly broke the silence, looking at the smaller with puppy-like eyes.

"I did yes. I have a degree on literature." Yaku anticipated what he thought would be the next question and smiled a little.

"Wow you must really like reading." The younger looked at him with wide eyes, almost as if for him someone who liked reading was something surprising. "I could never study something like that, I'd get distracted too often."

"Oh... I see." He wanted to be unamused with the other's lack of interest in things that usually he would find enjoyable, but for some reason he just couldn't be the judgmental self that he was so used being. 

"But don't worry, I'm totally gonna finish your book." 

"Oh really?" Yaku chuckled lightly and rested his chin on his palm, looking at the other with one of his brows arched. "Are you really that interested in it?"

Lev finished his drink in one quick swig and let out a sigh, "Yep."

"Won't you get bored while reading it?" He spoke in a teasing tone, leaning his face slightly towards the other, but much to his surprise Lev leaned his face closer to his as well, their noses nearly brushing against each other.

"Nope." The taller hummed, not taking his face away from Yaku's.

His voice trembled slightly, not moving away from him as well, "A-and why's that?"

"Because you wrote it."

 

* * *

_What a loser_. Yaku thought to himself as he looked at his reflection in the mirror. It was the first time in years he was actually seeing himself wearing a pair of swimming trunks and the result was what he expected, but not what he wanted to see. Once, when he was younger and more energetic, he used to have muscles where now he only had a thin stomach, his arms were larger and overall he looked more like a man than he did now. He quickly put on his t-shirt and hoped that he wouldn't have to take it off in the waterpark. God he hoped that Lev wouldn't force him to take it off, he really seemed like the type of guy who would.

His phone suddenly buzzed. He didn't need to look for it to know who it was, because ever since his fight with Kenma they hadn't actually been talking to each other and knowing the circumstances it could only be one person. 

 

[ new message ] I’m heading out of my place now damn I’m so excited ^^

 

Yaku smiled slightly as he saw the text, grabbing his bag before heading to the entrance of his building. He could tell that Lev was excited, but in all honesty there wasn’t practically anything that didn’t excite him.

 

[ text ] k I’m waiting outside

 

It relieved him that he didn’t get a reply from the other, at least he was a responsible driver. Only a few minutes after waiting, Yaku saw an old looking car stopping in front of his building and before he could wonder about who that was, a loud voice saying "Good morning!" did it for him.

"Good morning." Yaku replied, moving to sit on the passenger's seat and tossing his bag to the car's floor. "How are you?"

"I'm great, really." Lev started driving, glancing at the other before putting his sunglasses back in front of his eyes. "I barely got any sleep last night because of the excitement so I'm really high on caffeine right now."

"Oh that's... nice I guess." He looked in front and sat up straight on his seat, thinking how he was going to have to put up with someone, who was already excited 24/7, that was now high on caffeine. 

"Mhm we're gonna have a blast today, I heard they have this huge rollercoaster that goes underwater I bet it's really fucking amazing." There was clearly a difference in the way Lev was talking, not because he seemed more excited than usual but because he was basically spitting words faster than any normal human being would. Yaku chuckled quietly, covering his lips with the knuckles of his fingers.

 

* * *

They had been about an hour inside the car. Lev kept talking about how he had managed to get the tickets to the waterpark, how he had once gone to one when he was younger and had managed to lose his swimming shorts in one of the slides and overall just talking about all sorts of stories in his usual excited tone. Yaku didn't mind it, in fact he liked it. He liked to hear the other talking, he had all the energy that Yaku had lost a long time ago.

"So as you can imagine, I was crying b-" In midway sentence, Lev got interrupted by a strange noise coming from his car. A cloud of light smoke came out of the hood of the car and his light eyes grew wide. "Shit."

Yaku couldn't believe what was happening as the driver started moving towards the edge of the road. "What's going on?"

"I dunno." The taller pulled the breaks and turned off the car, then getting out and heading towards the front of the car. Yaku decided to go too, although his car knowledge was practically inexistent. Lev opened up the hood and more smoke came out, making both of the men cough. "Jesus..."

"You think it broke?" Yaku asked, one of his hands covering both his mouth and nose as he tried avoiding the smoke.

The gray haired man just hummed and shook a hand in front of his face to shoo the smoke away, then leaning forward and looking at the insides of the car. Yaku just observed, deciding not to say anything because he didn't want to risk annoying the other, then looking around only to see that they were right in the middle of nowhere. Surrounding them there were only rice paddies and a few small houses in the distance, cars would pass by them and people would curiously stare. Yep, they were screwed.

"Can you go get that triangle thing from the trunk?" Lev suddenly spoke, making Yaku wake up from his observations. The shorter of the two nodded and moved quickly to the back of the car, taking a folded metal thing and putting it together.

"Should I put it over there?" He asked, pointing at the road behind them. Lev simply nodded, his lips pursed together and his brows creased into a frown. Yaku decided not to say anything else and just walked a few meters away from the car to put the sign on the ground, the warm sun burning his skin.

"Ah seriously!" He suddenly heard the other shouting, his long arms being thrown in the air in despair before he slammed the hood back down. He was clearly upset, there was no doubt about it, and for some reason Yaku felt nervous. He had never seen him like that, he was after all one of those people that seemed to rarely get mad, so the way he was acting was a surprise. He wanted to say that everything would be all right just to calm Lev down, but he didn't know if that was true so he didn't want to make a fool out of himself.

"We should probably call for help right?" Yaku said in a rather small voice, stepping closer to the taller.

"Yeah. You go sit in the car, I'll call for the tow truck or something." As he said that, Lev went to grab his phone from his bag and Yaku obediently moved to sit inside the car.

He watched the other speaking on the phone through the front window, not really managing to understand what he was saying. Drips of sweat started coming down his forehead, since inside the car it was much hotter than outside, much like a metal greenhouse. A few minutes later, Lev stepped inside the car and sat on the driver's seat, a loud sigh escaping his lips before he spoke, "They said they'll be here in two hours."

"Two hours?!" Yaku's voice raised a few notches, if he had only be sitting inside the car for five minutes and he was already starting to go nuts he could not imagine how it would be to stay there for two more hours.

"Yep." The other said, then pulling down the windows. "Fuck it's so hot in here."

The minutes that followed were awkwardly silent. Both Yaku and Lev were leaning towards their windows to try getting as much of the soft breeze as they could, both not quite knowing what to say since the whole ordeal was pretty embarrassing. But the silence was suddenly broken when the taller started laughing, making Yaku wonder if he had become deranged because of the heat.

"You know, I knew something bad had to happen. I've been thinking about this trip for days, planning every single bit of it so the two of us could have fun. But I knew that something had to fuck it up, it always does." 

Yaku furrowed his brows and stared at the other. "Well it's not completely ruined, we can still find a way to go there."

"Well yeah but it's almost noon and we're still here. There's no way we'll make it in time to go on all the rides." Lev sighed again and leaned back against his seat. "This date is totally ruined now."

_Date_? Yaku remained quiet for a while, then looking at his own lap and pressing his lips together. Were they really on a date? Was he on a date with a man? He had no idea that Lev had planned the whole thing to be a date, because if he did he would probably have refused it. Or would he? He honestly didn't know. Throughout his whole life, Yaku always thought of himself as a straight guy, the only crushes he had ever had were on girls and he had only dated them too. He didn't think that he had ever lead the other on, after all he was just being friendly. He needed to tell Lev that he wasn't that type of person before things became more complicated.

"I uh... I didn't know this was a date." He hummed, facing the other again.

"Oh I know, I didn't tell you because it was supposed to be a surprise." Lev chuckled again and shook his head, the tip of his ears turning pink. God he was embarrassed. "I mean... the whole day was supposed to go as I planned, we would have fun together, get to know each other more and uhm... in the end I was going to ask you to go out with me. But nothing seems to be working now..."

Yaku would never think that someone like Lev would be that type of person too, he seemed so popular with the girls that it didn't really make much sense. What made it all even harder to believe was the fact that he wanted to go out with Yaku. Why him of all people? He wasn't particularly good looking, he was a huge book nerd who was in a mood most of the time, so what was his appeal? Lev must had noticed the confused look on his face because he let out a nervous laugh again.

"Sorry, I made you uncomfortable right?" He said, biting down his bottom lip.

"I-I'm not uncomfortable I'm just--" Yaku mumbled quickly, shaking his head. "Surprised I guess."

"Surprised? Why? Oh let me guess... you weren't expecting that I liked men and now you're disgusted." Although his tone seemed humorous, Yaku could tell that the other was hurt. Almost as if he was used to hearing that sort of thing whenever he got interested in someone.

"No it's not that..." Well, technically it was too but it wasn't the whole reason why Yaku was surprised. "I just... I wasn't expecting for you to get interested in me in that way."

Lev raised one brow and sighed. "Because I'm not like the stereotypical gay guy?"

"No! God..." Yaku was starting to get a bit annoyed at the other's suppositions, he had nothing against gay people, he just didn't think that any of them would ever feel attracted to him. If anyone really. "Because I'm not exactly the sexiest man alive."

"So? That doesn't make you less attractive to me." God what was that conversation even. Yaku felt Lev moving closer to him and his breath hitched slightly, he had no idea what he expected now. Part of him didn't want that date, didn't want Lev to have feelings for him because it was something very new to him and he had no idea how to deal with it. But there was that small tiny part of Yaku that was a bit curious. The fact is that, even though he had never really been attracted to a man before, he had thought about how it would be if he was that sort of person, how maybe that would explain his lack of success in relationships.

"I uh... okay but it makes no sense to me I mean--" Yaku ran a hand through his short hazel hair. "Not a lot of people get attracted to me, hell specially not guys so this is a whole new situation for me okay? I'm not really used to being confessed to, not even by girls so this is a bit... surprising."

"I see." Lev mumbled, the uncomfortable silence settling in once more. 

As Yaku looked out the window he noticed that there were strange looking clouds coming in their direction and it only took a few minutes before they had covered the sun and small drops started falling from the sky. 

"Great." Lev said in a sarcastically positive tone, rolling up the windows a little.

Suddenly, Yaku had an idea. He had to somehow fix the mess he had made, since he felt like he was the one who was at fault for making things uncomfortable between the two of them.

"Well, we might as well get wet somehow today." He said before opening the car door and stepping out, rain falling on top of him. It was actually pretty refreshing, making up for the burning sun that had nearly tortured him just a few minutes ago.

The other came out of the car only a few seconds later, staring at Yaku confused but not saying anything. His hands were inside his pockets and he leaned back against the car's hood, staring at the road with a sigh. "At least it's a bit cooler now."

"Yup, at least that." Yaku moved closer to the other and leaned beside him, looking at his right to see the raindrops falling over the water in the rice paddies. The air became filled with that earthy smell of ground that had suddenly become wet and Yaku could feel Lev's arm brushing slightly against his shoulder, his t-shirt sleeves already wet from the rain. _Maybe going out with you wouldn't be that bad_. He thought as he discreetly stared at the other's sharp features. Lev was nice, fun to be with, understanding and overall he seemed to care about Yaku more than anyone in his life ever did. Even if he was a man, maybe Lev was the one. _Fuck am I gay too_?? He looked away from the other and rubbed his face, trying to dry it off a bit even though it would be pointless do to such thing.

"This is actually pretty nice." The other suddenly spoke and Yaku raised his gaze back to him, gulping slightly. Lev turned his head to stare at the rice paddies and his lips curled into a soft smile. "At least we have a nice view right?"

"Yeah it's really nice." Yaku mumbled and did the same thing, staring at the fields for a while.

"You know... if you want to you can call someone to pick you up or something, you don't have to wait here with me."

Yaku furrowed his brows and stared at the taller. "No I'll wait here with you. Why would I leave you alone?"

"I dunno, I mean things are kinda awkward now aren't they?"

"So? Aren't first dates always like that?" That surprised both him and Lev. He had no idea why that suddenly came out of his mouth and by the way that the singer was looking at him he could tell that he wasn't expecting for him to say something like that as well.

Lev chuckled lightly, "Yeah they are."

Yaku played with the hem of his t-shirt and sighed, his heart was pounding from nervousness since he knew that now he had entered dangerous territory. Dangerous, unknown territory which he had no experience in. It was like he had suddenly become 10 years younger.

"Hey y-" The other was suddenly interrupted when he heard a honk. The tow had finally arrived and the two boys moved out of the car.

* * *

 

 

Yaku watched Lev talking to the truck driver and his car being dragged away, holding onto both his and the other's bag. A few minutes later, the tow started driving away and Lev walked back to him, looking slightly annoyed but a little relieved at the same time.

"He said we'll have to call for a cab or something, he can't really drive us back to the city." The gray haired man spoke, staring at the cloudy sky and humming. "At least it's not raining that much now.

"Yeah... I'll call someone." Yaku picked up his phone and stared at it for a while. Who would he call? Usually he would call Kenma, but since he didn't have a car and they were mad at each other maybe that wouldn't be a good idea. To call any of his other workmates would be problematic too, since he didn't know if he would be bothering them or not. There was only one person left. He sighed softly before dialing Kuroo's number and speaking to him, then turning off the call and looking at Lev. "He'll be here in a bit."

"Cool, should we sit down?" The taller started moving closer to the rice paddies and Yaku started feeling unsettled. He was going to have to explain to Kuroo what the hell he was doing in the middle of the road with Tolstoi's lead singer and he was sure that that would earn him at least 2 weeks of torture. God he just hoped that he would never find out about Lev's intentions.

The two of them eventually sat down underneath a tree, both facing the road since they had to be visible for their ride. Yaku was mindlessly drawing stuff on the mud with a stick as the other hummed to a tune quietly, some the cars that would pass by them honking. 

"So... if I asked you out again..." Lev suddenly spoke, Yaku felt his cheeks heating up. "Would you go?"

"Uh... I guess yeah..." Yaku mumbled, he could see the other smiling from the corner of his eye, heart thumping faster. He was entering  _very_ dangerous territory.

"Great." By the way his voice sounded, he could tell that Lev was quite nervous too. He didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing, but it was certainly a little bit adorable.

"Yeah... just let's try going somewhere in the city okay?" Yaku snickered slightly, biting the inside of his lip.

"Yeah don't worry, no more road trips." Both of them snickered for a while before becoming silent again. "Hey Yaku?"

"Hm?" In a matter of microseconds the other was leaning his face closer to his, long fingers cupping one of Yaku's cheeks as his lips were firmly pressed against his. Lev had his eyes closed but Yaku just kept his opened, he was acting as if it was the first time he was being kissed, frozen in his spot and his heart racing in nervousness. He heard a car coming closer. _Oh god what if it's Kuroo_.

After a while Lev pulled back, eyes opening slowly as he stared at the smaller with a blush. Yaku must have looked like a total idiot because the first thing that came out of the singer's lips was, "S-sorry..."

Yaku didn't want the other to apologize, hell he was the one who wanted to be sorry. The other had been probably been dreaming about that kiss and Yaku had somehow ruined it by acting like a dork. It suddenly came to his mind how soft Lev's lips were, how the kiss felt actually really nice. As he turned his head to him he noticed how hurt Lev seemed and he hated it. He had to somehow make up for it.

"Y-you... you can do it again if you want to." Yaku mumbled. _Oh fuck_.

"Do what?" Lev looked at him again.

"Kiss me."  _Oh shit_. 

His green eyes nearly sparkled as he heard Yaku saying that, "Really?"

Yaku just nodded and waited. His eyes focused on the ground as he tried to understand what was even going on in his mind. Before he could think more about it, he felt Lev carefully pulling up his chin and pressing his lips into a soft kiss again. This time the smaller closed his eyes, trying his best to relax and placing one of his hands against the other's chest. His heart was pounding as fast as his own, it was so... 

A horn was suddenly heard and the two pulled away, looking at the road only to see a black BMW moving in their direction slowly. _Fucking hell_.

"Yoohoo~" Yaku groaned at the familiar voice, getting up from the grass and grabbing his bag as he saw Kuroo peeking out the car's window.

"Who's that?" Lev asked, getting up as well and looking at the car in awe.

"Our ride." The smaller said with a sigh before walking towards the expensive car reluctantly.

_Fuck Kuroo_. _Fuck everything_.


	2. Chapter 2

“ _Yaku, can I kiss you again?_ ”

“Uh? What are you talking about? Kiss me?”

“ _Yeah… I want to kiss you again._ ”

“But— okay k-kiss me.”

 

His face got so close again. He couldn’t really tell if that was his face or not, it was all so blurry. Maybe he had forgotten his glasses. His face was inches away. He swore that he could feel his breath against his own lips.

 

“ _Uh… who’s that?_ ”

“Who?”

Kuroo was there, being Kuroo. Being attractive and loud and the nuisance he always was. He was talking about something but Yaku couldn’t understand what it was. 

Suddenly he was way too close to him, face in the same distance as Lev’s was before.

 

“ ** _Can I kiss you too?_** ”

 

 

He woke up with a gasp, raising himself from the bed and looking around to check if there was anyone else in the room with him. Thankfully he was all alone.

It was the second night in a row after his date with Lev that he was having some weird dream involving kisses and Kuroo would always be the one who would appear and turn the whole thing weird. At least on that night he didn’t throw up goldfishes on Yaku. He wondered if there was something wrong with him. 

God he hated Kuroo so much.

The ride home in his car on that fatiguing day had been beyond annoying and the reason for that was because Kuroo had been quiet the whole time. It was like he was trying to be invisible, wanting to see if Lev and Yaku would say anything to each other. After dropping Lev at his place, however, Kuroo started talking.

“So y-“

“Don’t say anything.” Yaku shut him up immediately because he knew that he didn’t want to hear whatever would come out of his mouth.

But now it was Monday and he had to go to work, which meant that he would have to face Kuroo and his weird comments for the whole day. And the cherry on top of the cake was that his deadline was seriously approaching and he still hadn’t finished the book he was supposed to review. Great. Life couldn’t be better.

The worse part was that Lev didn’t even talk to him after what had happened. No emails, no phone calls, no nothing. It seemed like he had either changed his mind about liking him or that he had become traumatized by the whole date going wrong. Yaku was still trying to make sense about the whole ‘I have a boy who likes me’ thing, because it still seemed pretty unreal to him. Lev, in all his weirdness and overexcitement, was a very good looking young man who easily drew people’s attention, so technically he could get whoever he wanted quite easily. He was sure that there were many good looking gay men in the world who probably would fall for Lev in a blink of an eye, but for some reason that tall weirdo had managed to fall for a short, grumpy nerd.

But maybe he had gotten over it.

Yaku wasn’t sure if that relieved or disappointed him.

 

* * *

 

 

The day was unbearably hot and to be stuck inside that old building, which had no air conditioning whatsoever, for 7 more hours made Yaku feel the urge of jumping out of the window. The only thing that seemed to be positive on that day was that Kuroo hadn’t come to his office to annoy him. It was overall a pretty normal day, reading the same book as usual and smoking a cigarette ever so often. Things were still the same.

However, as he was about to leave to go get some food for lunch, he suddenly heard a knock on the door that made him sigh.

“Yeah?”

To his surprise (and relief) the person that came in was actually Akaashi, who seemed to be wearing makeup, something that until then he had never noticed him wearing.

“Uh there’s this emo kid in the lobby saying that he wants to see you.” Even his voice seemed to be chirpier, not the usual unamused and monotonous tone Yaku was used to hearing.

“Emo kid?” Yaku arched his brow but his confusion soon disappeared as he realized who it was. It was obviously him.

“Yeah… I told him that you were busy at the moment. Is he a new author or something?”

Yaku grabbed his phone and walked to the door, his mind being flooded with questions of why had he gone to his workplace without warning. God he just hoped that Kuroo wouldn’t see him.

“No he’s uh… a friend.” He said as he walked through the door, leaving slender male with a puzzled look on his face. “Thank you Akaashi.”

He heard his workmate mumbling a ‘you’re welcome’ as he walked towards the elevator. He could feel his heart thumping even faster but he knew that it was in nervousness. Maybe the other had gone to the company to tell him that things weren’t working out and that he didn’t want to go out with him anymore. But hell why the fuck did that make him nervous? He wasn’t in love with Lev, all he did was kiss him. Twice. That didn’t have to mean anything right?

As the elevator door opened he saw the tall young man standing nearby the front desk, his eyes, which were focused on the floor, quickly raising up when he noticed that there was someone coming in his direction. Much to Yaku’s surprise he didn’t smile. In fact he looked anxious. _Fuck_.

“Hey.” Yaku said cautiously as he walked closer to him, he hated how he had to arch his neck back so he could actually look at his face while talking. “What are you doing here?”

“I uh… I wanted to see you.” Lev’s voice trembled slightly, he was so obviously nervous it was even starting to make Yaku feel the same way.

“I figured as much.” The way he said that made it seemed colder than he actually wanted it to be and Yaku saw how there was a small frown on Lev’s face.

“There’s uh… I’m…” Lev stuttered a few incomprehensible noises before he finally managed to form a proper sentence. “I wanted to ask you if you’d like to go out again today.”

Yaku’s short brows raised in surprise. Going out with him again? Was he serious?

“Uhm… y-yeah sure I guess.” He mumbled out, moving one of his hands to rub the back of his own neck.

He could hear Lev sighing in relief, “Oh good… what about tonight? Are you free tonight? We could go watch a movie or something.”

“Yeah a movie… sure.” Yaku was still pretty confused, for someone who had nearly made out with him in the middle of a road two days ago Lev seemed way too nervous.

“Your place? At 9?” Lev suggested as he walked backwards toward the entrance, his usual smile slowly appearing on his lips.

“Sure.”

“Cool. See ya!” He was soon crossing the door back to the street, leaving the building and a very puzzled Yaku with a simple wave of his hand.

 

* * *

 

 

The rest of the day was strangely productive. Yaku had managed to read more than he expected, leaving only about 50 more pages of the book to be reviewed. And he couldn’t lie, even though he was very puzzled about the whole situation, he was actually looking forward to going out with Lev later. Maybe things weren’t going downhill.

As he was stepping out of his office, a tall, suited figure suddenly appeared in front of him. Of course. The day couldn’t end on a perfect note.

“Hey there, Morisuke.” Kuroo purred, his smile even more annoyingly cocky than usual.

“Hi.” Yaku said firmly, heading to the elevator.

“Hey hey don’t leave yet.” The taller walked faster behind him and once more stood in front of Yaku, blocking him of any chances of escaping. “I wanna talk to you.”

He knew that Kuroo wouldn't leave him alone if they didn’t talk now, so Yaku decided to give up on his escape plans and sighed, “Okay, what is it?”

“Hmm.” There was that annoying smirk on his face again and Yaku fought the urge to smack him in the face. “It’s nothing special really, I just wanna know why the fuck you were kissing a wannabe rock singer in the middle of a road.”

“What does that have anything to do with you?” The way the other had made his phrase was what actually made Yaku mad. That and the obvious fact that he hated everything about Kuroo Tetsurou.

“Well nothing, but since we’re friends I think I have the right to be concerned about it.” The taller leaned against one of the walls, standing inches away from Yaku.

“You don’t have to be concerned about anything.” As he said that he started walking again, he wasn’t going to waste any more time with Kuroo.

“Aw come on Yaku~” Kuroo followed him towards the elevator and chuckled. “I’m just teasing you, I thought you’d know me by now.”

He decided to remain quiet and pretend to ignore whatever the dark haired male was saying, stepping inside the elevator once the doors opened.

“Don’t blame me for being curious Yaku, I didn’t knew that you were-“

“I’m not anything.” Yaku cut him off immediately, to have Kuroo thinking those things about him made him extremely uncomfortable. God knows what he could do with that information.

“Hey I’m not calling you anything I just didn’t know that you were into kissing other dudes.” He sounded actually serious this time, which made Yaku finally make eye contact with him. “I have nothing against that, everyone should kiss whoever they want.”

“I’m not into kissing other dudes.” Yaku mumbled, knowing that even if the doors of the elevator had opened that he wouldn’t be able of getting rid of Kuroo any time soon.

“Oh so it’s just him then? You look like you need a drink, why don’t we go out together tonight?”

“I can’t.” The shorter fixed his bag’s strap and kept the firm tone in his voice. “I have plans tonight.”

“Oh? With him right?” God he really wanted to slap him now, he couldn't believe that Kuroo Tetsurou was making him blush.

“Fuck off.” He just said before finally leaving the building, walking as quickly as he could out of there so no one would see the pink-ish tint on his cheeks.

 

* * *

 

 

At 8:30pm Yaku was standing in front of his bathroom’s mirror shaving his almost inexistent stubble.

At 8:40pm he was going through his closet and trying to find the best and least nerdy outfit he had.

At 8:43pm he pondered about burning his entire closet and just getting a stack of new clothes.

At 8:51pm he unbuttoned the top button of his shirt for the 10th time after having buttoned it up.

At 8:57pm he wondered if he had put too much cologne on.

At 9:00pm he stared at his phone after putting on his shoes and saw that there were no unread messages or missed calls.

At 9:05pm his phone buzzed and he walked out of his apartment.

 

* * *

 

 

“Hey.” Yaku greeted the taller with a smile, noticing that he was wearing a ‘cleaner’ version of the clothes he would usually wear.

“Hey you.” Lev beamed a smile and tilted his head. “Ready?”

“Yep.”

The two of them started walking to the nearest movie theatre, Yaku debating with himself whether he should ask the other why he hadn’t spoken to him for a whole day.

“Hey uhm… I wanna tell you that I’m sorry for suddenly appearing in your workplace without warning.” Lev broke the silence, never taking his eyes off of his feet as he spoke.

“Oh no it’s fine.” Yaku raised his head to look at him.

“It’s just… After what happened last Saturday I just felt so embarrassed. I didn’t think that maybe that would be moving too fast for you I mean—“ The taller sighed softly and ran a hand through his messy light hair. “I just kissed you without thinking that maybe you wouldn’t be comfortable with kissing yet. I thought you were angry with me since you didn’t say anything during the ride home… so I thought about giving you some space.”

“What?” He furrowed his brows and let out a soft laugh. “I wasn’t mad at you, I was… just mad at Kuroo I guess.”

Lev turned his head quickly to the smaller man, “Really?!”

“Yeah I mean why would I get mad at you for that? I wanted you to kiss me too.” Ah damn he couldn’t believe he was blushing a little as he said that.

“Well since… you know… I don’t think you’re-“

“Hm yeah. I’m not.” Yaku said immediately. “But that doesn’t mean that I didn’t want to kiss you.”

He swore that he saw the taller blushing, but he decided not to make any comments about it.

 

* * *

 

 

It didn’t take long before the two of them were sitting inside the movie theatre. A large bucket of popcorn casually sitting on Lev’s lap as he stared at the movie trivia that appeared on the large screen. Yaku, on the other hand, was gripping onto the seat’s handles as he tried to control his nervousness. He had had quite an amount of movie dates to know what usually went down in the dark of a theatre, specially since they were sitting on the far back of the room. He didn’t know about Lev, but he supposed that he was used on doing those kind of things with other men, but Yaku had no idea what to do or even how to react. What if the other tried touching him and he wouldn’t like it after all? What if they started making out and someone would call the security?

God everything was too new and confusing.

The lights in the room dimmed and he stiffened in his seat, staring blankly at the trailers appearing on the screen. He wasn’t actually paying attention to them, in fact his mind was still focused on the dangers of going on a movie date. Suddenly, as the trailer for an upcoming horror film was playing, Yaku felt a warm whisper against his earlobe.

“I’m not a big fan of horror movies.”

It was the most simple and innocent question ever yet Morisuke jumped on his seat as if the other had suggested something completely different.

“Uh… m-me neither.” He finally forced himself to say after staying like 10 seconds without replying.

“We should totally watch one together someday.” He could feel the smirk on Lev’s face when he said that and god did he have to be so dangerously close?

Yaku just nodded, not sure if the other had seen it in the dark of the room but sure as hell hoping that he wouldn’t lean closer. And thankfully he didn’t, Lev’s attention turned back to the wide screen as he ate some of the popcorn from the bucket, completely oblivious to the redness of Yaku’s cheeks. 

 

* * *

 

 

They were halfway through the movie when all of the sudden Yaku felt a gentle nudge against his leg and it was obviously coming from Lev. When he turned his head to his side he noticed how immersed the other looked, so there was no chance that he had done that on purpose. Morisuke was happy about being able of enjoying such a nice movie with Lev and even though they weren't actually talking he was having a great time. It was so strange to him the way Lev didn't affect him in a negative sense. Usually people who were overenthusiastic and overexcited would get on his nerves rather easily and he would always either yell at them or back away, but for some reason Lev's positivity and excitement wasn't as exhausting as everyone else's. He seemed to respect Yaku's space, without rushing him or pressuring him. For someone who had the energy of a labrador puppy, Lev was rather relaxing to be around. 

As a romantic scene appeared on the screen, Yaku suddenly felt like he was being stared at, only then to notice that Lev had been discreetly looking at him for quite a while. There wasn't much that he could see in the dark, but the taller's pink-ish ear tips were very visible and Yaku's lips curled into a small smile. The soundtrack of the movie became dramatic and touching, violins playing high notes in the background as a piano played a very emotional tune while the two main characters professed their undying love for each other. God it was so cheesy, he couldn't even bear looking at the screen.

And apparently neither did Lev.

The light haired man was somehow closer to Yaku, eyes unblinking and strangely enough focused on something lower than Yaku's. _Shit he's going to do it,_ Yaku thought to himself with a gulp, however not moving away from him. What a disgusting cliche it would be for them to kiss right in that part of the movie, yet his heart was throbbing with the hopes of feeling Lev's soft, thin lips against his own. Without giving it much thought, Yaku found himself leaning closer as well, the distance between them becoming smaller and smaller within each second that passed. Ah how weird it was to feel his warm breath against his own lips. How weird Yaku was for actually enjoying feeling that. _Just a bit more_.

A strange high pitched noise was suddenly heard and the movie stopped, making the two boys move away from each other both in surprise in confusion while looking at the now blank screen.

"What the-" Lev was the first to comment anything, squinting his eyes a little as the lights came back.

"Ladies and gentleman, our projector seems to have broke. Unfortunately we won't be able of displaying the rest of the film, we're very sorry for the inconvenience." A polite female voice was suddenly heard in the room's speakers.

Everyone in the room complained but gave in to what the lady in the speakers had said. One by one, the couples in the room walked down the stairs and headed to the exit, leaving both Lev and Yaku planted on their seats with a puzzled look on their face, and a light hue of pink colouring their cheeks. 

"W-well uh... that was anti-climatic." Yaku said with a soft chuckle, looking apologetic at the other.

"Yeah... I was actually really liking the movie." Lev rubbed the back of his pale neck and sighed. "And right when we were about to-"

"Yeah true." He didn't want the other to say the word so he immediately interrupted him, he couldn't bear the embarrassment of hearing Lev talking about them kissing. He then took a deep breath and got up from his seat, looking at the exit. "We should probably..."

"Hm let's go."

 

* * *

 

For someone who really valued silence, the lack of conversation between him and Lev was making Yaku very uncomfortable. They had decided to take a walk before heading home, slowly pacing one beside the other as a gentle breeze made the trees buzz. It was actually a really nice night, Yaku noted as he stared up at the sky for no reason in particular, since stargazing in such a big city would be pointless. He had always found summer nights somewhat pleasing, they were often cooler but not to the point that he'd want to put on one of his pullovers, there was always a nice atmosphere in the city, calmer than during the day. And despite his discomfort with the silence, he was actually happy with the fact that he was enjoying such a nice ambience with Lev.

"So uh... I was hoping we could go out more often from now on." To his surprise, the singer actually broke the silence. 

"Sure I'd love to." Yaku hummed, shoving his hands inside his trousers' pockets.

"We could maybe... not go to the movies." The taller turned his head to him and Yaku pulled up his glasses, smiling up at him.

"Yeah sure, we could go do something else."

"L-like you could come to my band's next concert." He could tell that Lev was nervous about asking that, but it was so adorable. "It's next Saturday at this small club, I-I can text you the address if you're interested."

Yaku pulled his glasses up again out of habit and tried covering his warm cheeks, "Sure I'd love to go."

"Really?" Lev stopped walking and flexed his legs a little, looking like he was ready to toss his arms up in celebration. The first image that popped into Yaku's head as he saw him like that was one of a praying mantis and he couldn't help but chuckle lightly.

"Yeah, I like your music." He stopped to look at him and noticed how his arms had dropped.

"Oh... but you'd be there to see me too right?" Was he pouting? Jesus just how old was he?

But Yaku was going to have his fun, so smirking slightly he resumed walking, "I guess."

"You guess?" He heard Lev taking long strides to keep up with him, then seeing from the corner of his eye how he was staring at him with his brows furrowed.

"Yep."

 

* * *

 

Being the kind of influential person he was, it was not something new for Kuroo to have lunch with people from other companies and discuss business, even if most of the time they would talk about trivial stuff rather than business itself. He actually enjoyed those events, they allowed him to meet people who were more like him. And on that day's case, to meet people who he would certainly want to see again in a different context. 

Leaving the restaurant in a rather satisfied way, Kuroo walked back to his company, since it was only a few blocks away. As he was taking a turn on one of the streets, he suddenly saw a group of young men handing out leaflets.

"Next Saturday at 10pm, don't miss out!" One of the young men said, and Kuroo immediately recognised him. His day was surely getting interesting. 

He was approached, however, by a shorter guy with bright orange hair who was wearing way too much eyeliner that gave him a leaflet and excitingly said, “Please stop by this Saturday, we’re giving out free t-shirts.”

Kuroo held the piece of paper and read it quickly, a snort coming out of his lips before he finally told the boy that he would go. He heard him enthusiastically thanking him as he walked away, the leaflet still on his hands. Things were certainly going to get interesting.

Once he got to the building the first thing he decided to do, instead of taking care of all the paperwork he had to get done, Tetsurou headed straight to Kenma's office. His sudden appearance scaring the smaller man since he did not even think about knocking before entering.

"Hey are you busy?"

"Yeah... I actually am. How many times do I have to tell you not t-" 

"Yeah yeah, listen." Kuroo interrupted the other and sat on his desk, then handing him the leaflet. "I hope you're free this Saturday."

He watched as the smaller man took the paper in his hands and read it with his brows furrowed, smirk etching on the dark haired man's face before he spoke again.

"That's Yaku's boyfriend's band." He couldn't stand not saying it, arms folding over his chest as he waited for his friend to react.

"Yaku has a boyfriend?" The fact that Kenma wasn't aware of it surprised him, since the two shorties were very close to each other.

"He does now apparently." Kuroo shrugged and got up from the desk, yawning. "Anyway, I was thinking about stopping by that club and give Yaku a little surprise and I think you should come with me."

Kenma looked at his friend for a while before sighing and turning back to his work, "You know I don't like clubs."

"But don't you wanna meet your bestie's boyfriend?" Kuroo said that in a tone that seemed like a very bad attempt on trying to be cute, and Kenma tried not to show his second-hand embarrassment.

"I don't even know if he wants me there." The long haired man mumbled and flipped a page of the book he was reading.

"Of course he does. It will be a good surprise." He patted his friend's shoulder and walked towards the door. "Text me later okay?"

The only reply he got was a shrug of Kenma's shoulders but he knew that that was enough.

Saturday just never seemed to come. 

 

* * *

 

That was one of the moments when Yaku wished he had more than one close friend, so he could ask them if his outfit wasn't lame enough for him to wear to a concert. He had no idea why all of the sudden it seemed like there was actually a problem between him and Kenma, why the lack of contact between the two of them appeared to create even more conflict than them actually fighting. But he had no time to be thinking about him now, Yaku had to quickly put on something to wear otherwise he would get to the venue late. 

And as usual, he stuck with a pair of jeans and a simple button up shirt.

 

He knew that probably trying to communicate with Lev would be pointless, since he would be surely practicing or doing other preparations for the show. Yet, it was so strange for him not to have a single text on his phone coming from him, after all the hundreds of messages that he had sent him on the days before. Maybe he was just busy. Besides why should Yaku care so much about texting him? They weren’t dating or anything, it wasn’t like he was dependent of him.

Things were only going to get more confused and complicated, he knew that deep inside. He knew that going to that concert wasn’t going to mean the same thing as it did the first time he saw Tolstoi performing with Kuroo.

Lev was no longer just a weirdly tall rock singer.

 

* * *

  

When he arrived at the venue he was surprised with how full it actually was. For such a small group they were surely starting to gather quite an impressive amount of fans. The crowd was varied, however he noticed how most of them looked much younger than him. In fact, he started to notice how great part of the people in the venue looked more like high school students than responsible adults. But it wasn’t his job to care about them, he was there just to watch Lev perform and to give him his support. 

There was a small part of him who wanted to go to the front of the stage, but he knew that doing that would a) be dangerous, since there were a couple of young girls who seemed pretty excited and protective about their position; b) be embarrassing since he didn’t actually want Lev to notice him that easily. So he decided to stay by the bar, sitting on one of the stools and ordering a beer for himself as he waited for the concert to start. 

It was indeed quite strange for him to be there all by himself.

“I knew you’d be here.”

_No fucking way…_

The voice came from his side and he couldn’t believe what he was seeing: Kuroo Tetsurou, wearing a leather jacket and a pair of jeans that were too tight for him, and Kozume Kenma, who was wearing his normal and simple attire. Yaku’s mind was flooded with all sorts of thoughts, most being of embarrassment and awkwardness. Being the Yaku Morisuke that he was, he just froze on his seat and stared at both of his workmates as if they were something out of this world.

“Hey.” He suddenly heard Kenma saying, while tugging one strand of his hair to the back of his ear. 

“H-hi…” Yaku forced himself to say, then taking a long sip of his drink and sighing. _Fuck_.

From the corner of his eye he saw Kuroo smirking and he knew then that trouble was going to start, “So, I was walking back to the company the other day and I saw these kids handing out leaflets about some concert and I thought it would be fun for me to come with Kenma.”

“Don’t treat me like I’m your child.” Kenma grumbled almost inaudibly, but loud enough for Yaku to hear.

“Anyway.” Kuroo continued confidently, moving to sit right beside Yaku and sighing, “When I saw the name of the band I remembered that time when we went out and since they were pretty good I thought, why not?”

Yaku remained silent, staring blankly at his glass of beer and trying to find a way of explaining himself, not to Kuroo but to Kenma.

“You were listening to their CD the other day right?” The latter, much to Morisuke’s surprise, said. “You were going to lend it to me but—“

“Y-yeah they’re called Tolstoi.” Yaku said after clearing his throat. “A friend of mine is in them so…”

“Hm true _a friend_. What are you drinking Kenma?” Kuroo said with a snicker.

“Beer is fine.” The smaller mumbled before settling down on one of the stools. “Do you guys know each other for a long time?”

Yaku gulped, the other seemed rather calm but he couldn’t help but feel a little nervous, “No not really…”

“But you’re quite close aren’t you?” As usual whenever Kuroo would speak Yaku would feel the urge of breaking his glass against his head.

“Yeah I guess you can say that.” Yaku glared at the taller male and finished drinking his beer.

The conversation was pretty much over after that, Yaku ordered another drink while the other two were busy sipping on theirs. Kuroo was the first one to break the silence once again, nodding his head towards the stage and saying confidently, “I’m actually friends with the guy that owns this club.”

None of the other two replied, but they did look at each other. In that split second it was almost like things were back to normal: Yaku, Kenma and Kuroo hanging out with each other and the first two trying to ignore whatever the latter was saying. Both of them suddenly released a soft chuckle, then sipping on their drinks. 

“You don’t believe it? I’ll show you after the concert. His name is Sawamura Daichi, you just wait and see.” 

Any attempt of replying was quickly quieted when a voice was heard coming from the stage. There was a short, red-headed young man trying to speak into the microphone (which was quite a few centimeters taller than him), "We apologise for the slight delay, but ladies and gentleman please give a round of applause for Tolstoi!"

Everyone in the crowd started cheering, even Kuroo. There was a strange feeling of nervousness taking over Yaku while he watched the small guy walking off the stage. Lev would come on stage in only a few seconds and he was sure he would look great, he was sure all the girls in the club would have their eyes focused on him, how they would screech and call for his name. That made him sick, for some weird reason. It made him feel like for some reason he had the need of reassuring himself that somehow Lev belonged to him.

Which was already someting pretty fucked up. They weren't dating. Yaku wasn't even gay he-

"Hey Mori I think someone wants to catch your attention." He suddenly heard Kuroo's low voice speaking against his ear.

"Uh?" there could only be one person in the whole room who'd do such a thing, so Yaku quickly moved his gaze to the stage, only to find the singer staring at him with a smile as he sung.

"He's been staring at you for a while." Kenma added, sipping on his beer while watching the whole scene. "Is he your boyf-"

The smaller was suddenly interrupted by a nudge coming from the CEO, who was observing the brown haired male. 

The exhange of looks that happened between them was something that belonged to a cheesy romantic comedy, it was long and silent, well kinda since one of them was singing in front of an audience, and it was in such a way intense that if someone who wasn't aware of their situation would either think they were fucking each other in their thoughts or they were in the middle of a staring competition.

Why was Haiba Lev so enticing? How could Haiba Lev be so gracious and beautiful while being almost 2 meters tall? Why was Haiba Lev just...

Haiba

"Lev..."

Kenma looked at his friend with a confused look on his face, thin brows furrowed as he leaned closer, "What?"

Yaku widened his eyes and shook his head, saying "N-nothing, don't worry." before he looked back at the stage. He was enjoying the concert but deep inside he just wanted it to be over soon.

He wanted to be close to Lev again.

 

* * *

 

 "God I'm exhausted."

"I'm sweating in places I didn't even know existed."

"Gross man."

Lev just laughed at the conversation his bandmates were having while he chugged down a whole bottle of water. Much like everyone else in the backstage, he was sweating like a sinner in a church but he didn't mind it. It had been their first real concert and the audience seemed to have enjoyed it. 

"Lev my boy--" His lead guitarist, Tanaka, wrapped his arm around his shoulders (as much as he could) and pulled him into a hug. "You were fucking amazing, thank you so much for getting us this venue."

"Hey I didn't do anything, it was mostly Shouyou." Lev admitted bashfully before tossing the empty water bottle to the trashcan (and gloriously missing it).

"OH MY GOD GUYS YOU WERE AMAZING!!" Almost as if he had super-human hearing, Shouyou, a small, red haired young man that would get overly excited with everything, entered the backstage with his arms wide opened. "Everyone is talking about you out there, we're so gonna get rich tonight."

"Hey hey aren't you exaggerating it a bit?" Taketora, the band's drummer, discreetly walked towards the fallen water bottle and placed it inside the bin correctly. "They liked it, but I don't think everyone in here is going to buy our CD's."

The red haired boy just cleared his throat and pretended to ignore the other, then turning his attention to Lev and saying excitingly, "DO YOU KNOW WHO'S HERE TONIGHT?!"

"Who?!" He expected the other to say something like 'THAT CUTE NERD YOU LIKE' but that would make no sense since he didn't even know about his existence.

"Kageyama!!!" The smaller threw his arms up in the air as if he was talking about Mick Jagger or Barack Obama or something like that.

The bandmates all looked at each other confused, only realizing who it was after a few good seconds and saying in unison: "Ahhh! Kageyama!"

"Anyway, the guy's out there waiting for you. He said he loved the concert and that he's happy his lyrics were in good use." Shouyou started picking up the amplifiers (one at the time because the kid was not that strong) and stacking them one top of each other on a cart. "You should go out there and greet him or something, I'm gonna finish packing stuff and then let's all go out for drinks!!"

Everyone cheered. Shouyou always had the best ideas.

 

* * *

  

The crowd started slowly walking out of the venue, leaving only a few dedicated fans in the room. Yaku was still sitting by the bar with his workmates, looking expectantly at the backstage door and hoping that he would see the gray haired man walking out of it. Just a few meters away from him, there were a group of girls excitingly talking about how the band, and how they wanted to get their arms signed by them (one of them didn't exactly say 'arm' but Yaku pretended he hadn't heard that).

"What are we waiting for?" He heard Kenma suddenly asking.

"Yaku's boyfriend." Kuroo said, sounding bored. Yaku was too tired to say anything about the 'boyfriend' thing.

But when he suddenly saw that messy light hair coming out of a dark hallway, Yaku's legs moved by themselves and he hopped down the stool. He didn't care if the others had noticed him, Lev looked like he had come straight from a fashion magazine and Yaku was once again questioning his sexual orientation. It only took him a few seconds before he saw a dark haired young man walking beside him, they seemed to be enjoying their conversation and Yaku (who did not consider himself a jealous kind of guy) found himself wishing the dark haired guy would be suddenly teleported somewhere else.

"Oh! Here's your boy Yaku." Kuroo commented, snickering quietly afterwards.

It took Lev only a couple of seconds to finally notice Yaku staring at him, his eyes widening and his lips gaping as if he was surprised about seeing him there. And the truth is that he actually was. 

"Yaku?!" He said with a wide smile, walking faster towards the brown haired male. "Oh my god you actually came, I can't believe this I--"

"I told you I would." Yaku replied with a chuckle, his eyes never moving away from the other's green ones.

Before Lev could say anything else, he was suddenly interrupted by Kuroo, who stepped closer to the two with a cocky smirk, "Hello again. Great concert."

"O-oh uh-- thank you so much!" Lev had been taken by surprise, but he didn't keep his smile hidden for the tall young man.

"Y-yeah uh... you met Kuroo before right?" Yaku suddenly intervened, gently pushing Kemna closer to them and smiling a little. "This is my friend Kenma. We uh... we came together."

"Oh! They're your friends?!" As the singer said that, Kuroo broke into a loud laugh, knowing that it would annoy Yaku even more.

"... don't tell me you thought I had no friends." The smaller looked unamused at both the taller boys and crossed his arms.

"N-no it's not that! It's just--" Lev shook his hands quickly, cautious with the next thing he was going to say. "I just didn't think you'd take them here. Well anyway, good timing Yaku I want you to meet someone."

Yaku's brows furrowed and he looked at the people behind Lev, "Uh? Who?"

Lev smiled proudly and pushed the young man he had been talking to earlier to his front, making him obviously embarrassed, "This is Kageyama Tobio! He's the guy that writes our lyrics, since you like them so much I thought I could introduce you two."

As he looked at the flustered guy in front of him, Yaku heard a small voice in his head saying his name on repeat. He had the feeling he knew him from somewhere, but he couldn't exactly put his finger on i-

"Kageyama Tobio?!" Yaku said, rather loudly for his own embarrassment.

"U-uh-- y-yes, nice to meet you." The boy bowed his head a little, a bit taken aback by the other's attitude.

"D-do you..." Yaku took a deep breath. "Do you have any fucking idea of the work you're putting me through? Do you even know that commas are a thing? How the hell do you have the guts of sending a book filled with typos huh?!"

Everyone just stared at him confused, the young writer felt even more embarrassed and he only managed to stutter out an apology.

"Yaku uh... calm down." Kenma mumbled, placing his hand on his friend's shoulder.

After saying his piece, Yaku looked around and noticed how everyone was looking at him. _God..._ He covered his face and hoped, just like little kids do, that he would become invisible.

 

* * *

 

"I'm sorry about that whole... scene." The short male mumbled, looking at the pavement as he walked back home with the singer.

"Oh no problem, it was actually pretty funny." Lev said while fixing his guitar's strap that was on his shoulder. "I had no idea he was the pain in the ass author, I'm sorry for introducing him to you like that."

Yaku sighed, "Don't worry about it, what's done is done."

There was a gentle smile planted on Lev's lips as they walked to Yaku's building, the cool night's breeze making strands of his messy hair move a little as he looked ahead. The smaller, of course, was taking note of every single detail of Lev's appearance at that moment, but he did his best to be discreet since getting caught in such an embarrassing situation was not how he wanted to spend his evening. So in order not to be so obvious about it, he decided to break the silence once more.

"You probably wanted to go drinking with your friends. I'm sorry."

"Uh?" Lev looked at Yaku with his eyes wide. "No I mean... drinking with them is fun but, I wanted to take you home."

That idiotic blush was back on the smaller man's cheeks and he fought the urge of slapping himself, "I-I see..."

"Y-yeah I mean... I wanted to spend some time with you too you know?" Once again, both of them were acting like a pair of nervous teenagers and, although it was quite endearing for him to see Lev being so bashful, Yaku was getting annoyed at himself for not acting his age. But before he could say anything else, the taller continued talking, "I wanted to know what you thought of the concert. Like uh... d-did I look cool?"

Morisuke suddenly snorted and covered his lips in order not to laugh, Lev's question was so childish and pure it was hard for him to keep a straight face. "Why are you asking me that? Does it really matter?"

Lev's voice became louder from the embarrassment, "Yeah it does! I wanna know if you think I looked cool."

"Of course I did, everyone did." Yaku fixed his glasses and stared up at the other, who had suddenly stopped walking.

"I don't care about them..." That statement had the editor looking at the singer confused, but he didn't ask anything until the other finished. "I wanted to look cool just for you. I-I even kept looking for you, when I saw you in the audience it was like... It was like my heart was bursting in happiness."

 

_Oh Lev, I'm so glad you thought the same!_

_Oh Yaku, I love you!_

_I love you too Haiba Lev!_

 

That ridiculous scenario suddenly appeared in Yaku's mind, making him cringe hard. "God..." He said before chuckling loudly. "What the hell was that? Did you start reading romantic novels or something?"

He noticed how Lev's eyes trembled after he had said that, how there was a small, bittersweet smile planted on his lips and how his gaze focused on the ground as he started walking again. _Fuck_ , Yaku thought to himself as he watched how defeated the other looked. Truth was that what he had said did make him embarrassed, and the best way he had to fight against that uncomfortable feeling was to joke about it. But obviously Lev didn't feel the same way, he probably thought that what he said was the most beautiful and sincere thing ever and that Yaku was just making fun of him because he didn't feel the same.

Yaku was frozen in his spot, watching as the taller dragged his long legs across the cement pavement without saying a word. This time he actually hit himself in the face, on the forehead to be more precise, he had definetely done it.

"You looked really cool." God why was he even saying that, it was nothing like him.

But at least it made Lev turn around and look at him, his face however not lighting up in happiness like Yaku was expecting. Instead he just said a very neutral, "You don't need to say it just to make me feel better."

"What are you talking about? I'm-"

"It's okay Yaku." Lev was smiling in that weird way again and Yaku's heart tightened in itself. "I think I got it, you don't need to say anything else. Let me just take you home at least."

This time he didn't feel bad for what the other said, he felt straight up mad that Lev had gotten the wrong idea and that he wasn't even letting him explain. Yeah he had been rude to him, yeah he would probably be a lot of times more in the future, but that didn't mean that he didn't find Lev cool when he was performing or... something along those lines. Truth being told, he had no idea what he had felt during that performance but one thing he was sure: that he had loved it.

"Listen here you-" Yaku clenched his fists and walked closer to the other. "Don't act like that and at least let me explain what the fuck is going on okay? You think you can fucking assume things just because of what I said? Well guess what young man, you can't just expect to say something fucking cheesy like that and not get a reply like mine okay?" His voice was becoming louder and he saw how slightly scared Lev looked, but he continued. "You can't just say something that sounds like it came straight from a shoujo manga to a 26 year old man and expect for cherry blossoms to fall in the background and a cheesy fucking reply okay? This is not how it works.

Being so surprised by the way the smaller was talking, all Lev managed to say was: "I never thought I would hear you saying 'fuck' so many times in a row."

"Well tough fucking luck, I'm fucking pissed." Yaku scoffed and looked away, hands placed on each side of his hips.

"A-also, you're 26?"

He squinted his eyes and looked up at him, "Yeah, why?"

Lev's eyes grew wide and he placed a hand on his forehead, looking at the building behind Yaku, "Fuck... I thought you were like 20 or something I mean, you really don't look like it I'm sorry."

"Oh fuck off." That was the last straw, he was already mad from the assumptions Lev was making and to now hear one of his biggest pet peeves coming from him it was like he had pressed a trigger in him. So he started walking home all by himself, half expecting for the other to follow him but half not, he didn't want to see that annoying face ever again.

"Y-Yaku wait!" Of course Lev would follow him, he heard his running steps coming in his direction, but he didn't look back. "I'm... I'm sorry okay? I'm sorry for thinking you don't look your age."

He just sighed and continued walking, Lev had to do much better if he wanted to fix things now.

"I just... I was surprised, I never liked someone that much older than me. P-please don't be offended..."

Wait. That much older? That had Yaku turn around and look at the taller male confused, "Just... how old are you Lev?"

"I'm uh... twenty."

"Twenty? Really?" Yaku crossed his arms, by the way the other had looked away while answering he could tell that he was not telling the truth.

"... eighteen." He mumbled quietly, then saying with more conviction. "But I'll be 19 this October." 

Yaku couldn't believe it. This whole time he had been fawning over a kid, a stupid kid with probably no experience whatsoever. He felt like he had been fooled, although the other had never really told his age before or lied about it until now. He suspected that he might have been older, maybe 20 or 21 years old, but 18 seemed a bit too much. Even if technically he was already considered an adult.

"I..." This time it was him who felt defeated, arms dropping to his sides as he sighed. "I should go."

"I'll come with-"

"No. Just..." Yaku glanced at the taller and shook his head. "Just go to your friends Lev."

"Yaku..." He pretended like he hadn't heard Lev saying that in that annoyingly adorable sad tone, he just walked home as quickly as he could.

 

* * *

 

He felt like crying, but he couldn't understand why. They weren't dating, Lev never fooled him, they had just kissed a couple of times and gone to a few dates but that was all. He wasn't in love with Lev, he barely knew him. But he was just... disappointed with it all. Disappointed that the only person who showed interest in him after such a long time was 1) a dude, 2) a rockstar, and 3) eight years younger than him. Knowing that Yaku's ideal type was usual a female around his age who had a sober and stable job like being a librarian or lawyer, it would be safe to assume that the two of them would never work out. However, in the back of his mind Yaku was just questioning why wouldn't it, despite Lev being all those things he had still managed to have fun with Yaku and even to, although it almost physically hurt him to admit something as corny as this, make his heart flutter every now and then.

Yaku needed to talk to someone. Someone who wasn't 190cm tall or half-russian.

" _Hello?_ " His friend Kenma said on the other end of the line after Yaku dialed his number.

"Hey uh... can you talk right now?" Yaku sat nervously on the bed, biting his lip.

" _Yeah sure. It's not like I have anything better to do at 2:30am on a Saturday night so._ " He heard Kenma yawn, he was probably asleep when he called him. " _What's up?_ "

"It's... Lev." 

" _Lev?_ "

"Yeah the guy I... was just friends with." Yaku said with a sigh.

" _Oh the emo kid. What's with him? Did he do something wrong?_ "

"Yeah... he was born 8 years after me."

" _Oh... wait what? How old is he?_ "

"He's 18, Kenma... 18 years old."

" _... I'll be there in ten._ "

 

* * *

 

"I knew you were probably going to need a drink so I brought these." Kenma said in his neutral voice while raising a package of beer cans. "You don't look too bad, I thought you would be crying or something."

Yaku guided his friend to his living room and sighed, "I don't cry about these things."

"You did with Kiyoko." His long haired friend said while sitting down on the couch and opening one of the beer cans.

"Kiyoko was different, we dated for almost 4 years." Yaku grabbed a can as well and opened it carefully. "I don't know why but I just... I kinda liked that kid."

"Just kinda?" Kenma took a swig of his beer and shuddered a little with the taste. "I saw the way you were looking at him."

"Yeah yeah whatever. You know I'm more into girls right?" Yaku stared at him seriously. "I'm not even into guys so it makes no sense why I should feel so sad right now right?"

Kenma snorted, "Why are you concerned about that? Does it really matter if he's a guy or a girl, don't you like him for who he is?"

That left Yaku thinking and staring at his carpet, after a few seconds he took a sip of his drink and sighed, "I guess I did. Fuck we even kissed."

"I know, Kuroo told me." There was a faint smile on Kenma's lips and Yaku tried not to lose his temper.

"Of course he did." Yaku grumbled before leaning back against the couch. 

"I mean, don't be so hard on him. For someone who's so strict about showing affection in public it's surprising that he would find you kissing a guy in the middle of the highway."

"We weren't in a highway." Yaku corrected him right away, feeling his cheeks heating up but blaming it on the alcohol.

"Mhm. So what are you going to do now? Move on?"

Yaku sighed and glanced at his friend, "Yeah I mean... what else should I do? We can't be together, he's too young."

"He's not _that_ young, I mean at least he's an adult." Kenma mumbled and stared at the blank TV screen.

"Yeah but you know..." Yaku then smiled slightly. "Wanna stay over tonight?"

His friend looked at him and gave him a small smile, poking his forehead, "Sure."

 

* * *

 

It was like things had came back to normal. Yaku's inbox only had texts from his clients and co-workers, he had a new pile of books to review, the weather was nice, it was like nothing had ever happened. He forced himself to think that way, that he had truly moved on from the fling he had with an aspiring rock singer, but he knew that it was something that couldn't just disappear from his mind like that. He was the first guy he had ever felt like it was okay kissing, the first time he had ever doubted what had always been so clear in his life until then, his sexuality. But now he didn't need to think about it anymore, he just needed to focus on his job. 

That morning had been very productive, he had finally managed of finishing the Kageyama book, which in itself was a very bittersweet victory. Not only because reading and correcting that book had been an adventure, but because of the connection that dumb author had to Lev. As he turned around the bunch of sheets, he felt almost as if he was closing a chapter in his own life, a really short and experimental chapter that would haunt him for the rest of his days, but that he wouldn't mind forgetting about it. As he was about to start a new book, which looked much organized than the one before, he suddenly heard a knock on the door.

"Can I come in?" He recognized the gentle tone of Akaashi's voice and immediately replied.

"Sure, come on in."

The dark haired man smiled sheepishly and leaned against the doorframe, Yaku had never seen him like that before so he couldn't help but give him an unsure smile.

"I uh... I don't know if Mr. Kuroo told you but I'm going to move out of the country next week." The pretty man continued, until then Yaku had never really paid that much attention on how good looking he actually was. Having soft, feminine-like features while still keeping a manly demeanor.

"Wait what? Really?" He only realized what the other had actually said a few seconds later, looking at him with wide eyes. "Where are you going?"

"Well uh... my partner got a job offer in Australia so we decided to move there." The younger male explained, his cheeks slightly tinted as he mentioned his partner.

"Oh uh... congratulations for your partner then." Yaku smiled, although the only thing that went through his mind was how 'partner' was usually not the type of word used by men with girlfriends, and adding that to the other's care for his appearance and usage of tight clothes it all started to click in his mind. Suddenly he felt like asking him all sorts of questions about it, but he knew that they're relationship wasn't that close and that it would be completely inappropriate for him to do such a thing.

"Thank you. We're going to have a dinner party today in a restaurant downtown so I wanted to know if you would like to come." Akaashi smiled softly, Yaku found himself staring at him not-so-discreetly.

"S-sure." He mumbled.

"Cool. Dinner's at 8, Kenma and Mr. Kuroo will be there too." The black haired man moved slightly out of the door and nodded. "See you later."

"See you." Yaku said, his eyes never leaving the other's slender figure as he walked away. The thoughts that continued flooding his head made him blush. "God what's wrong with me." He mumbled while pressing his hands against his warm cheeks.

 

* * *

 

Kenma had told him to meet in front of his place a few minutes before the dinner party and Yaku was there right on time. He decided to wear something different, something not so casual but that wasn't a shirt and a pair of pants, thanks to Kenma's advice. He was even wearing contacts, all for the sake of looking good for... Akaashi? He knew it made no sense, he didn't even have feelings for him, the man was even taken, but it was like all of the sudden he felt the need to impress him. He was woken up from his thoughts when he heard a familiar annoying voice calling out his name.

"I thought he wasn't coming." Morisuke mumbled while glaring at Kuroo, who was obviously wearing one of his expensive suits, looking more like he was going to attend a wedding than a goodbye dinner party.

"Well he's his boss too so." Kenma said while fixing a strand of his own hair. "So, let's go?"

The three young men started walking towards the restaurant and the awkward yet comfortable silence was soon broken by the obnoxious dark haired man, "So how're things going with your boyfriend, Mori?"

Yaku shot a glare at him, noticing how Kenma was doing the same thing. "They're not."

"They're not? What did you guys fight or something?" He knew Tetsurou wasn't going to give up, so he figured out that it would be better to just stop acting like an uptight bitch and tell him straight up what had happened. 

"Lev is 18."

"... uh so?" Kuroo looked at the smaller with an arched brow. "He's over age, what's so bad about it? I've been with 18 year olds before and it's no big de-"

"Ew Kuroo. Just. Ew." Yaku squinted his eyes and stepped a bit away from him. "Do you have any idea how weird it is for a 26 almost 27 year old to date an 18 year old?"

"You're just like... 8 years older than him, it's not that much of a deal man." After the suited man said that, he suddenly gasped and started waving his arms up in the air. "WHADDUP MY HOMIE!"

Needless is to say that the two smaller men just stood there staring at their friend in complete disbelief, questioning in their own minds what in the living hell the other was doing but when they saw another guy, hair weirder than Tetsurou's, with his arms also up in the air they realized that he hadn't lost his mind.

"HEY HEY HEY!" The guy shouted, his voice echoing across the street, then sprinting in Kuroo's direction and giving him a tight hug. "Oh god man I haven't seen you in such a long time where the hell have you been?"

"Ah Bokuto I'm so sorry, I've been busy with work you know?" Seeing two men as big as Kuroo and Bokuto hugging in the middle of the street was not an usual occurrence, and everyone who was walking by immediately focused their attention on them. Both Yaku and Kenma looked down at the pavement in order to hide their embarrassment.

"I'm so glad you could come." But upon hearing that familiar soft voice, Yaku moved his gaze upwards and smiled at the delicate young man that appeared in front of him.

"A-Akaashi, hi." The hazel haired man mumbled, stepping closer to him.

"You look good without glasses, Yaku." He said, patting the shorter male's shoulder gently. 

"T-thanks, you do too." Ah he was blushing again wasn't he? Fuck.

 

* * *

 

Tanaka never knew what to wear for a date, but he hoped that wearing a simple black shirt and a pair of decent jeans, along with a lack of piercings, would impress the girl he was going out with. She was about four years older than him, a total hottie who worked at the local library. He first saw her at the supermarket, when he was buying beer for his bandmates, and it was love at first sight. After a few days of discreetly stalking, he finally managed to figure out where she worked and eventually talked to her. Things went well, thankfully, the girl accepted his invitation to go on a dinner date and so there he was, nervous and sweaty, but other than that he was happy. 

While they were eating, Tanaka did his best to listen to her and let her do most of the talk, it was a tip he had gotten from his best friend Nishinoya, and she looked like she was having a good time. The only problem was that a few tables away from them there was a group of loud men whose laughters would often make it almost impossible for him to understand what she was saying. Being the short tempered guy he was, Ryuu would occasionally glare at them and tell his date that he was going to ask them to shut up. When she was about to say something that for Tanaka was important (basically the kind of music that she liked), another loud laughter that came from a guy with gray and black hair cut off her speech, and to him that was the end of the line.

"That's it, I'm gonna talk to them." He said as he got up from his seat.

"Ryuu..." She said softly, holding onto his arm. "Don't worry about it, they seem to be having fun."

"But Kiyoko they're-" As he looked back at the table he suddenly noticed something odd. The small guy his bandmate had been sobbing over for the past few weeks was at that table, laughing loudly and, in his opinion, standing a bit too close to another pretty guy. "What the--"

"Ryuu let's finish our meal hm?" She smiled and pushed him carefully back to the table. "We can talk a bit louder if necessary."

He pressed his lips together and sighed, looking away from the table and sitting back in his seat, grumbling quietly while eating some more of his food.

 

* * *

 

"Eh Tanaka!! How did it go?" Nishinoya was the first one to greet him as he came home, patting his shoulders.

"It went well. She's so great." The baldy said with a smile. "She said we could go out later tomorrow after she's done with work."

"Oh man! That's so cool." His roommate walked back inside, scratching his tummy underneath his shirt and yawning.

"Hey Yuu is Lev here?" Tanaka's voice sounded aggravated, making his friend turn around and look at him confused.

"Yeah he's in the bedroom with Taketora. I think they're playing FIFA or something. He's still really down the poor guy, but that's what happens when you go for straight guys I guess-"

"Thanks." Ryuunosuke quickly walked to Lev's bedroom only to find him laying on the bed with his face buried on the pillow, their friend saying comforting words and rubbing his back. "Jesus is he okay?"

Taketora sighed and looked up at Tanaka, "Not really. It's his fourth breakdown ever since we started playing."

"God... hey Haiba Lev." He poked his shoulder, making the taller male look at him with swollen red eyes. "I have to tell you something."

"What?" The younger asked with a sniffle, rubbing his eyes to dry the tears.

 

* * *

 

Much to Yaku's surprise, the dinner party was actually quite fun. The food was good, Kuroo wasn't being the usual nuisance because he had been most of the time entertained with Bokuto, and the conversations he shared with both Akaashi, Kenma and a few other of his coworkers were quite interesting. The drinks too were great, which was the reason why at a certain point of the night he had stood maybe a bit too close to his pretty colleague. But Akaashi was such a great guy that he didn't even seem to be bothered by it, plus for god know's why, Yaku actually wanted to be close to him.

After saying goodbye to the couple, him, Kenma and Kuroo began walking back home, all slightly intoxicated and still recovering from the bubbly environment from the dinner. While Kenma and Yaku were talking about happily about some new book that was coming out in a few days, Kuroo suddenly cleared his throat and interrupted the conversation by saying a rather rude tone, "You know Yaku, I'm all for you being all into guys and stuff like that. But don't hit on my buddy's boyfriend man, that was uncalled for."

Morisuke looked at the taller with a shocked face, "Uh?! The fuck are you talking about? I wasn't hitting on Akaashi."

"Oh come on you were all over him like a cat in heat." He rolled his eyes and continued staring ahead, hands shoved inside his pockets. "But you do you, you're lucky Bokuto didn't notice it otherwise you'd be in trouble."

"Oh fuck off I wasn't hitting on him even." Yaku crossed his arms and raised the tone of his voice. "We were just being friendly okay? We all had a bit too much to dri-"

"Hey isn't that your emo kid?" He was interrupted by Kenma, who was pointing at a tall man who was running in their direction.

"Emo ki-" Yaku couldn't believe his eyes. Fuck, of all times that was when Lev decided to appear?

And before he could turn around and hide, Lev made eye contact with him and started walking in his direction. The closer he got, the better Yaku could see how swollen his eyes were and... how he was wearing pajama pants.

"Y-Yaku... I-I was looking for you." The boy panted, looking at Yaku as if he was the holy ghost.

"For me...?" He felt both of his co-workers staring at him then, but he was too drunk to get embarrassed. 

"Y-yeah... can we uhm... can we talk? Please?" The gray haired male held onto the hem of his t-shirt, eyes trembling from nervousness. "I won't be long."

"... all right."

 

* * *

 

 

Lev insisted on walking Yaku home, since he didn't want to make him go out of his way. Yaku never thought that he would look so down, he wasn't wearing his usual dark and stylish clothes but a large hello kitty head and some Moomin pajama pants. His hair wasn't the usual messy, it was the kind of messy of someone who hasn't gotten up from bed in weeks. He looked like an abandoned oversized kitty and Yaku felt the urge of taking him home and taking care of him.

As they got closer to Yaku's building, the half-russian boy suddenly started talking, his voice breaking at the first syllable, "Y-you-- How have you been?"

"Good I guess." Yaku shrugged his shoulders and stopped walking, looking at the taller while chewing on his bottom lip. He hoped the other couldn't tell that he was actually drunk, and since he was actually more focused on the pavement than on him he felt a certain relief.

"I...I really miss you." Ah he was already expecting that bomb to be dropped. He wanted to stay quiet, to draw the line between them more firmly. They couldn't be together.

But he found himself mumbling, "I miss you too."

Lev raised his head in surprise and looked at him with wide eyes, lips parted. But instead of commenting on his shock, he shook his head and looked back down, "I wanted to know if... if you don't like me..."

"I..." Yaku sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers, the contact lenses were making his head starting to ache. "I like you Lev I just... we can't be together, you're too young."

"Does that really matter?!" The younger's voice rose up a few notches, looking Yaku straight in the eyes and balling his hands into fists. "Does it really matter if I'm a few years younger than you? I never lied to you about my age, I-I... the thing is I really like you okay? N-not like you I... I love you Morisuke."

 _What is this kid even saying_ , was the first thing that came into his mind. He wondered how could someone as young be so sure of loving someone who he didn't actually know for that long, it was one thing to like him but to confess his love like that was crazy.

And something that no one had ever done to him.

He didn't know if it was because of the alcohol, but Yaku felt his cheeks heating up a few seconds later after hearing his confession. He remained quiet, however, he didn't want to make the same mistake as last time.

"Yaku..." Lev walked closer to him and gulped. "Please give me another chance. I promise I'll be the best boyfriend you've ever had, I... I even finished your book two days ago."

The smaller looked up at him, "You did? You read that garbage?"

"It's not garbage. I loved it." Lev continued, moving even closer to him. "Sure it's not a masterpiece, but it's still well written and interesting and... a-anyway Yaku I just--" He suddenly grabbed his hands. "I'll beg for the whole night if necessary, I couldn't stop crying these past few days because I missed you so much."

Yaku was at a loss for words, avoiding to look into the taller's eyes but not pulling his hands away.

"I... okay..." His cheeks became even redder after he stuttered that.

"W-what?! Did you just say-"

"Okay Lev!" Yaku nearly shouted, looking at the other. "I'll go out with you or... whatever you want."

"Date me." He said firmly. At that point Yaku was divided between cringing with the cheesiness of the situation and feeling happy.

"I... I'll think about it." Even with that answer, the younger cheered happily, his usual wide smile back on his face. Yaku found himself smiling as well, finding Lev absolutely adorable.

"You won't regret it I promise." Lev said, holding onto the smaller's shoulders.

"Okay okay..." Yaku chuckled. "You look weird in those pajama pants."

"Oh--" Lev moved a bit away and tried to cover his outfit, still smiling however.

"It's cute though."

He didn't need to say anything else, Lev almost immediately reached to grab the smaller's hand and pulled him into a tight hug, then shouting a bit too loudly for Yaku's embarrassment.

"I love you, Yaku Morisuke!"

_Oh god..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELL THAT TOOK A LONG TIME TO POST
> 
> i'm sorry for that guys, i promise i'm gonna try writing the rest of the fic as quick as possible
> 
> anyway i hoped you enjoyed it !! and thank you everyone for the nice comments and feedback on the first chapter, i really appreciate it !


	3. Chapter 3

From all the surfaces inside Yaku’s office, the only one that seemed to make the buzzing of his phone more tolerable was his own chair. The only problem was that, since he was actually using it, having a buzzing device placed under his rear while he was working was well, beyond inappropriate. He had thought about silencing the phone completely, but he realized that would also be a bad idea since he was expecting an important call. It was even getting hard for him to think, the constant buzzing kept filling up his train of thought in such an annoying way he was even considering throwing his phone out of the window.

He had told Lev several times not to text him so much during his work time. Though he did enjoy seeing a few loving texts every once in a while, it was starting to become too much for him to handle. So with a low groan, Yaku got up from his seat and grabbed his cigarette pack, heading to the window and lighting up one of them. And almost as if he had guessed it, only a few seconds later he heard Kenma’s voice speaking right in front of his door.

“Can I come in?”

“Yeah, sure.” Yaku said as he glanced at the said door, watching the male entering his office with a scrunched up nose.

“Slowly killing yourself again? What happened this time?” He didn’t even need to reply, Kenma realized what it might have it been about when he saw Morisuke’s phone buzzing again. “Ah… the lovebird.”

Yaku sighed and exhaled the smoke out of the window, then turning around and leaning against the wall so he could face his friend. “You know, part of me is telling me that it’s adorable and cute that he wants to talk to me so bad but at the same time I feel like I’m dating a teenager or something.”

“Well you kinda are…”

“He’s an adult though. He’s already an adult.” Almost as if he had to reassure himself more than his friend, Yaku rolled his eyes and pressed his hand against his forehead. “Do you need anything?”

Kenma, without even asking for permission, grabbed his friend’s phone and quickly pressed one of the buttons on the side, glancing at him, “You do know that phones have a silent mode right?” He heard Yaku groaning in annoyance and continued speaking, a soft smile on his lips. “Anyway, I wanted to know how you were, it’s been a while since we hung out.”

“Yeah true… Lev has kinda been filling up my schedule lately.” Yaku pressed the cigarette against the ashtray.

“You’re talking about your boyfriend as if he’s a chore or your kid…” Kenma snorted and crossed his arms, leaning his rear against the other male’s desk.

Hearing the word boyfriend was still something Yaku wasn’t accustomed with. And he was definitely not used to associating it with someone like Lev. But not because he wasn’t happy about it, rather because for someone who had always considered himself pretty straight his whole life suddenly being in a relationship with someone from the same gender was something that took a bit of time to get used to. Without giving it much thought, Yaku’s face contorted a little, making Kenma snicker.

“Anyway, Tetsurou’s been annoying the shit out of me reminding me that your birthday is next Monday and since I don’t want him to think that he can just throw some random party for you I wanted to ask you if you’re planning on doing something on that day.” The blond said, placing a strand of his hair behind his ear.

“Uh…” Yaku furrowed his brows in thought. The truth was that he hadn’t even been thinking about the fact that his birthday was in less than a week, he hadn’t even mentioned it to Lev so he was pretty sure he had nothing to do on that day. “No, no plans whatsoever. Since Lev doesn’t even know about it I don’t have anything to do on that day. Except to go to work.”

“Cool. We’re thinking— well, I was thinking about like throwing a nice little dinner in a good restaurant with your friends and stuff. Whoever you wanna invite.” The taller male moved away from the desk and stood in front of his co-worker. “What do you say?”

“Yeah sounds like a good idea.” Though he was trying hard not to show it, there was a small smile on Yaku’s lips. To know that Kenma always remembered that his birthday was somewhat endearing, it meant that Yaku meant something to him.

“Cool. Talk to your boyfriend about it later or something, I’ll look for a place and make a reservation.” He walked back to the door and pulled it to himself, then beaming a smile at Yaku and nudging his head towards his phone. “Your boyfriend’s calling you, you should probably pick it up.

“Uh?” Yaku looked at his phone and noticed that it had Lev’s name glowing on the screen, picking it up quickly and clearing his throat. “Hello?”

 

* * *

 

 

Lev excitingly hummed to a tune while putting on his sunglasses. It was like for the first time in his life, things were actually starting to work out. Not only had he gotten a cute boyfriend, but his band had managed to get booked to perform in a load of clubs mysteriously. His bandmates had said that maybe there was someone working behind their backs, somehow investing on them and promoting them to club owners and things like that. It was something that made them concerned, though they were pretty thankful about it, but Lev just couldn’t care less about some random guy promoting his almost unknown rock band. He had a boyfriend. An older nerdy boyfriend who loved spending time with him as much as he did.

He checked his phone again for any texts and for the time, noticing that it had already passed a few minutes from the date he had arranged with Yaku. But he didn’t get worried, after all his boyfriend was a hardworking man, maybe he had gotten stuck with work. But thankfully he didn’t have to wait much longer, raising his eyes from the screen as soon as he heard the familiar quick steps.

“ _Dorogoy_!” Lev shouted, stretching his arms out and beaming a wide smile at his boyfriend.

Yaku was already used to his loudness and excitement, however it still surprised him when he would suddenly call him something in Russian. Shaking his head slightly, he stopped in front of the taller and stood on the tips of his toes, carefully pulling his arms carefully down.

“I have no idea of what you said but hello to you too.” He smiled slightly and huffed a little, fanning his face with his hands. “Anyway, ready to go?”

“Mhm! I’m so glad you’re finally here, I missed you so much.” Lev wrapped his long arms around Yaku’s head and pulled him to himself, giving him a tight squeeze. “You didn’t answer my texts the whole day, I was worried…”

Yaku huffed, trying his best not to think too much about how embarrassing the two of them probably looked. “You know I was working right? I was busy trying to check for any more mistakes on that book.”

“Oh my god does that mean you’re done with Kageyama’s book finally?” Lev pulled away and smoothly slipped his hand to hold the other’s, his long fingers pressing against Yaku’s warm skin.

“Almost yeah… though I don't think it's actually gonna be published." No, in fact he was sure that a book like that would never be published by anyone ever, not with that broken grammar and bizarre sentence structure. He noticed that Lev looked conflicted, his light eyes wider than normal. "I won't tell him that it won't happen, I'll just send the book back and tell him to fix it and then send it again."

Lev remained silent, surprisingly, but only for a few seconds. "I should probably buy him a drink later."

"Yeah..." They had started walking towards nowhere in particular, their hands linked as they avoided gazes from those who passed by them. Or at least Yaku did.

"Anyway, we're gonna have a gig tonight." The taller skipped a little, making it difficult for his lover to follow. "We somehow got booked at this really famous club, it's gonna be so cool!"

The snicker that came out of Yaku's mouth was something close to that of what a parent would make after seeing their kid doing something cute. "When is it?"

"Midnight. But you don't need to go if you don't want to, you're always going to our concerts you're probably getting tired of hearing us." The light haired male rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand and looked ahead, obviously trying to look cool in front of Yaku.

"Hm well do you want me to go?" Yaku mumbled, pulling the frame of his thick glasses up and squinting his eyes a little at the sunlight. "I mean, you must otherwise you wouldn't even tell me about it right?"  That once again left the half-russian man speechless, his teeth playing with the skin of his bottom lip while he looked ahead. Yaku decided to resume talking, "I'll be there. Don't worry."

There it was. That smile that could shine brighter than the sun. "I knew it, I was just testing you." Lev leaned down and pecked the top of his boyfriend's head, a gesture that wasn't that much appreciated by him. "I love you."

"Yeah I love you too."

 

* * *

 

 

Mediocre. Everything about that place was mediocre. The drinks, the music, the decoration... it all screamed a certain desperation to be hip and fashionable, but it was failing terribly. The man was used to a certain lifestyle now that he was finally being successful, the kind of lifestyle that didn't imply getting him shoved into basement-like clubs and listen to wannabe-Nirvana bands. God how much he was regretting that decision. How much he was regretting for asking for such a complicated cocktail in a place like this.

Even the couches felt sticky and disgusting.

"Wanna finish my drink?" He suggested to his companion, his button-like nose scrunched in an almost child-like manner.

"I told you not to order anything flashy." As usual, the other was reprimanding him, though he was the one working for him. "Just leave it somewhere or throw it into the trash, no one will notice."

"But then I'll have to get another dr-" He was cut off by a sudden attempt of a high note from the lead singer of the band that was performing, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He made a promise to himself not to meet people in shady clubs ever again.

"I see you two have already made yourselves comfortable." A familiar low voice was heard over the loud music, the man nearly jumped from the couch when he saw who had said that.

"Kuroo Tetsurou!" He shouted, placing the blue coloured drink on the short table in front of him and huffing in frustration. "Remind me to never let you choose meeting locations ever again."

"Aw don't be like that Tooru." The dark haired male made his way to the couch, sitting beside the other and offering a smile at his companion. "'Evening Iwaizumi."

There was a light nod coming from Iwaizumi in response, hiding his lips behind his glass as he sipped his beer and watched the band performing. He too didn't want to be there, but not for the same reasons as his boss.

"I mean it! This place is absolutely disgusting Kuroo, I can't even finish my god damned drink." Tooru's tone was whiny, resembling that of frustrated kid . Iwaizumi still didn't understand why he would turn into that when he was with Kuroo Tetsurou, but something told him that he really didn't want to know why. "Anyway, please tell me these aren't the kids you wanted me to see."

"Don't worry Oikawa, they're only performing later." His Adam's apple bobbed up and down visibly as he swallowed his drink and Oikawa followed it intently with his eyes.

One could not exactly understand what was going on between those two. Many said that they had slept/were sleeping/will sleep together, though when asked neither of them would admit it. At times, there was a strange sexual-like tension that was visible even to the most distracted people, almost as the two were about to have sex right in front of everybody else. At others that wouldn't be the case, they would exchange snarky little petty comments about each other, the kind that only people from the higher class of society would ever be offended with, almost going at each other's necks. 

In conclusion, there was something really fucking weird about Kuroo and Oikawa and Iwaizumi was damn sure he didn't want to be part of it.

"What was the name of the band again?" Oikawa had already made himself comfortable around the taller man, one of his legs hooked on top of his as he stole a sip of his beer.

"Tolstoi. You'll know who they are when you see them." Kuroo's lips just curled into their usual state as he watched the brown haired male taking over his glass, not even getting bothered by it.

"Tolstoi..." As if mimicking the other, Oikawa's lips turned into a sly smirk and he put the glass down right beside his previous one, inching his face closer to the other. "You do know I have a very picky ear, Te-tsu-ro-u~" One of his long fingers stretched out and brushed his sharp jaw slowly, reading Kuroo's expression. 

"Well--" Two could play that game and Kuroo inched his face closer as well, so close in fact that he could feel the other's breath against his own lips. "Trust me just this once okay? I know what I'm talking about."

 

* * *

 

 

"O-okay guys promise me you're not gonna kill me after I tell you this." Everyone was suddenly taken aback by Hinata's announcement, stopping from preparing his instruments in the backstage to stare at the orange haired male. "But I've been told that there's a major producer in this club tonight and that he's gonna watch our performance."

"WHAT?!" Everyone said in unison. Taketora even managed to drop his drumsticks on the floor.

It didn't even take half a second for the band to circle around Hinata, making the poor boy scared though they had been friends for a long time and he knew they would never hurt him. And then the questions started: How do you know that? Who told you that? Who's the producer? What if he hates us?

"W-well I got this text from an unknown number saying that. Apparently no one else knows that the guy is here tonight." He nearly sighed in relief as he saw the taller men walking away from him, grabbing his phone and then reading the message out loud. "Oikawa Tooru the CEO and head producer of AOBA Records will be coming to The Pit tonight. Good luck." 

Lev furrowed his brows and after a few seconds of silence mumbled, "Creepy."

"Very." Nishinoya added. "How did they get your number Shouyou? That must be someone you know."

"I have no idea, I've never seen this number before. I tried texting them back but they never reply." The roadie sighed and ran a hand through his fringe, feeling his skin getting wet with sweat. "Anyway, there's nothing we can do now guys except to do our best and do the greatest performance we can!"

Though everyone was nervous, it was hard not to feel pumped with Hinata's enthusiastic words. Everyone cheered loudly and started getting their instruments in tune, only to get interrupted by a short haired girl who came from the backstage door to announce that they'll be up in a few minutes.

Lev excitingly grabbed his phone and took the opportunity to send one last text to his lover, then shoving his phone back inside the guitar case.

 

[ new message ] the best and scariest thing just happened I can't wait to tell you

 

* * *

 

 

Yaku could barely focus on what he was reading with the amount of noise in the room, knowing that it would be pointless to reply since his boyfriend was about to go on stage. Though he had gone to dozens of concerts in the past few weeks, he still couldn't get used to the environment of clubs and small venues. They were always crowded, had the scent of a mix of alcohol, sweat, several types of perfume, and even worse if it wasn't a top notch club.

And The Pit was one of those cases.

It was mostly known for being a venue known for its metal band performances, though they accepted pretty much anyone who'd be looking for a place to perform. Yaku made sure to do some research of the place before going, quickly finding out that the drinks were pretty low quality and that the space wasn't exactly the best, though a very enthusiastic user on the review website had said that 'the opportunity of finding new and great bands overshadows the shitty drinks and the bad environment!' but Yaku wasn't sure if he would feel the same way.

Still he had to be there for his boyfriend and even if he had to endure the bad stench, he was going to be there for the whole performance and clap in the end.

Following the advice from the review website, Yaku avoided the bar as much as he could, trying to find a good spot where he would watch the stage and avoid any contact with the strange looking people in the club. But almost as if it was haunting him, he heard a loud manly voice shouting his name. He closed his eyes. He swore under his breath. He turned his head and saw Kuroo Tetsurou sitting in the couch beside another clean-cut guy and he fought the urge to run away and ignore him.

"What are you doing here?" He said immediately, walking towards the red (were they really red? He couldn't really tell, it was too dark for him to understand) couches and avoiding the gaze that Kuroo's friends were giving him.

"Oh what a cute little thing. Is this your new fucktoy?" He could barely believe what had come out of the brown haired man's mouth, staring at Kuroo with wide and angry eyes. Oh boy he was ready to fight.

"What the fuck?!" He yelled, his voice sounding higher than expected since he was getting angry. "What the fuck did you tell them about me Kuroo?"

"Relax." He laughed amused and placed one of his arms around the posh-looking guy's shoulders. "I didn't tell them anything, they're my friends. Yaku this is Oikawa and Iwaizumi."

"Enchanté." The man, he assumed to be Oikawa, stretched his hand and shook Yaku's smaller one. The other man just nodded and discreetly leaned a bit away from the other two, staring at the stage with the look of someone who wanted to be away from there.

"Sit down my friend, the show's about to start." The mocking tone of Kuroo's voice didn't do its job to annoy Yaku, since he was pretty much used to being talked like that. But he still snickered when he saw the smaller man sitting stiffly beside him. "Yaku works with me. We've been friends for a really long time."

"Oh really." Though he was talking about him, Oikawa didn't even spare a glance at Yaku. Maybe because, unlike Tetsurou, he didn't look like he had three sports cars and a yacht. "Should I be jealous?"

"Tooru you know that there's no one in the world that would ever replace you." He could barely believe what he was just witnessing and now he understood why that other guy looked like he wanted to run away. There was something happening between them but Yaku was sure not to ask him about it, after all to show any interest in Kuroo Tetsurou would mean that he would win in the end. What exactly? He didn't know, but he sure did not want to give him that satisfaction.

A very unenthusiastic voice suddenly announced that Tolstoi were gonna come up on stage and everyone turned their heads towards it, Yaku nervously clenching his fists over his knees as he waited to see that tall frame under the limelight. Though he wasn't looking, he noticed that even Kuroo and his friend and stopped whatever they were doing, focusing while mumbling things that Yaku could not understand.

And then he saw him. It almost felt like the day they first met, it always did. In a matter of seconds, the scowl on his face turned into a proud smile. And when the music started he lost himself in the talented man that was Haiba Lev. 

 

* * *

  

Some other band had already come on stage and Yaku was getting fidgety, waiting impatiently for his boyfriend to come out of the backstage. Unlike earlier, Oikawa had gone silent and serious, talking to Iwaizumi quietly every once in a while as if he was telling him a secret. Kuroo on the other hand had disappeared from the scene without saying anything, something that wasn't that much like him.

His face lit up when he saw gray, messy hair appearing from the middle of the crowd, shoving his phone back into his pocket as he waited for him to come. As usual Lev noticed him right away, walking faster than his bandmates so he could be with his boyfriend.

"How did it go? Did you like it? Oh god I have so much to tell y-"

"Young man, can I talk to you for a second?" Both his words and his motions to hold Yaku's hands were suddenly cut by that imposing voice, and Lev quickly raised his head to walk towards its owner. Yaku watched everything from a certain distance, noticing the other band members walking closer to them.

He had stepped away slightly from the scene, looking at it as if he was watching a movie. He saw how Iwaizumi took a small card from his pocket and discreetly handed it to Oikawa, then watching the latter handing it to Lev. Looking much like a confused puppy, Lev took the card in his hands and read it, the widening of his eyes suggesting that he had just saw something impressive.

But curiosity sometimes was stronger than it should, and unfortunately Yaku had lots of it. So he discreetly stepped closer to the group of men and pretended to be doing something on his phone (which actually consisted of him opening one or two apps and checking them) while he listened to their conversation.

"So here's the deal." Oikawa's voice was much different than earlier, it sounded determined, masculine, almost as if he had turned into a completely different person. He spoke in a captivating way, almost as if his words were like music and the boys were rats. "In two weeks there's gonna be this band contest held by our company and a few other record labels. The winner's gonna win the chance of producing an album with one of us and even choosing with whom, which since we're the most successful company participating I highly recommend for you to choose us. If you win. If you do win, then you'll get the chance to sell thousands if not millions of copies of your albums and maybe, who knows... even going on tour."

The group of boys let out excited noises, no one was believing their luck, not even Yaku. But he remained silent.

"My assistant Iwaizumi will get in touch with you soon and tell you about the details. In the meantime, do your best hm? I'm looking forward for the possibility of working with you." After he said that, he saluted with two of his fingers and walked out of the club, not even saying goodbye to Morisuke.

Almost instantly, he saw a tall shadow launching itself towards him and he woke up from his thoughts. "Did you just see that?!"

Yaku couldn't help but smile at the sight of how enthusiastic Lev looked, "Yeah. Sounds exciting."

"Exciting? This is the best thing ever that has ever happened to me! I mean... right after I met you of course."

He shook his head and hit the taller's arm gently, then turning towards the door. "Let's go. I'll let you sleep over tonight."

  

* * *

 

The feeling of Lev's lips against his no longer felt foreign or shocking. Despite the struggles of finding a good position that matched the inglorious height difference, now it seemed like their bodies had been molded together. Laying on the side, hard chests pressed against each other while hands travelled across every part of each other's body, an ocasional pleasurable sound or hum coming out of their lips, was all something Yaku had grown accustomed to. In fact, it quickly became something Yaku longed for, though he would never admit it. He loved the way Lev would always ask for permission before starting to kiss him, how he was always so cautious, treating Yaku as if he was something precious. It pleased him to know that Lev respected his lack of experience with guys and his boundaries. 

It was never obvious who would be dominant over the other, it was always something that seemed to take turns between them. Sometimes it would be Lev who would place his hand on his lover's hip and tug him closer to him, others it was Yaku who would initiate a more heated kiss by rubbing the tip of his tongue against Lev's bottom lip. If Lev would decide to be a bit more risky and bite onto Yaku's lips, he would often move his hands to Lev's lower back and lightly graze his fingers over his behind. But it never went beyond that. Yaku wasn't sure if he was ready for that yet and since Lev never really suggested it he had never really thought much about it.

The truth was that if the kiss would get too heated, usually either of them would pull back from it.

Yaku brushed his forehead against Lev's in the most intimate manner, feeling his long fingers rubbing his clothed waist. "So... my birthday's coming."

Though he was too close to notice, he could feel Lev's brows raising. "Really? Why didn't you tell me earlier? When is it?"

"On the 8th. Next Monday." Yaku mumbled, leaving a trail of kisses on Lev's temple, cheek and jaw before finally nuzzling against his neck. "Kenma's throwing a birthday dinner for me and I wanted to know if you could come."

"Of course I will!" It was nice to hear Lev speaking in such a hushed tone, to feel his warm breath against the his ear. "I'm gonna have to get you a gift."

Yaku moved away to look into his boyfriend's eyes, sighing softly as he slipped his hands to the back of his neck. "You don't have to, really. If you want to give me something don't get into too much trouble for it hm? Get some flowers or chocolate or whatever."

"I'm not gonna give flowers or chocolate or whatever to my boyfriend on the first birthday we're celebrating together." He pretended to sound offended, which only seemed cute in Yaku's ears.

"Just don't feel pressured to give me anything complicated okay?" His eyes met with light green ones and his heart felt lighter inside his chest. Whenever that happened it was like a game of endurance, they would just stare into each other and wait to see who would be the first to kiss the other.

Morisuke was used to playing that game and he had gained some practice now. He would tease him, lean his lips closer until he could feel Lev's trembling in anticipation. Then he would chuckle softly and pull back again, watching as the taller sighed in frustration and nearly whined. Usually that game would go for a while, but on that day Yaku felt like he couldn't waste any second with Lev. It was strange, but after that night's events it was almost like he had to rush for something, like if they wasted too much time teasing each other they would regret it in the end. And there was also the curiosity of being with a man in such an intimate way that added another sense of rush to it, so before he could watch Lev silently beg for a kiss, he latched his lips against his and pulled him into a passionate kiss.

Needless was to say that Lev was surprised, but in all honesty even Yaku was surprised with himself. Never had he kissed someone as desperately as he was kissing the other then, their teeth even clacking against each other, it was as if something had taken over his body all of the sudden. He was just thankful that Lev didn't seem to mind it, in fact it seemed like he was pretty much enjoying it, letting out moan-like noises against Yaku's lips as their tongues met in a slightly messier kiss.

It was like they had lit up a fuse. In a matter of seconds their bodies were tangled against each other, legs fitting in places that can't be considered appropriate. Though their Summer clothes were already light, everything felt too hot and bothersome in that moment. Yaku felt the sudden need of removing Lev's shirt, of brushing his fingers against what he assumed would be soft skin on his chest, feeling his curves and warmth. Almost as if his hands moved on their own, Yaku hooked his fingers on the hem of Lev's t-shirt and tugged it upwards. He obviously caught his lover by surprise, who pulled away from the kiss with an almost inaudible gasp and looked at him. He expected for him to ask what he was doing, but Lev just gulped and let his boyfriend remove his shirt, then wrapping his long arms around his slender clothed body and kissing him again.

Yaku's curious hands explored everything that they could. The more they travelled across Lev's skin the more he could feel it getting goosebumps, knowing that he was brushing against someplace nice whenever Lev would sigh or hum into his lips. There clearly were major differences between a girl and a boy's body. The most obvious one was, of course, the hardness of his chest, whereas girls would be soft and squishy Lev was hard and firm, but nevertheless nice to the touch. Yaku's lightly brushed against the boy's nubs, earning a quiet mewl that was by far one of the most attractive things he had ever heard in his life. His fingers then continued their journey across Lev's stomach and back, feeling its curves while he focused as much as he could on the kiss they were sharing.

Then he felt a pair of familiar hands fiddling with his own shirt and Yaku knew what that meant. He broke the kiss and let his lover get him rid of his superhero shirt, watching it fall somewhere by the end of the bed before looking back at him. Whenever they were alone like that it was almost like Lev's personality would change. He expected that him being the human equivalent of an overexcited puppy that he would probably be pushy, whiny, beg for Yaku to let him do this or that to him. But he was surprisingly mature, sometimes even shy. Though he loved the overexcited puppy, whenever Lev would get like this Yaku would often have to take deep breaths to calm down his throbbing heart because dear god, that guy was attractive. They stared at each other for a while before Yaku finally latched his lips against Lev's jaw, nipping on the soft skin gently as his hands resumed their previous motions.

"Mori..." Lev suddenly mumbled, his voice weak probably because of his tiredness. 

Without looking away from what he was doing, Yaku hummed in response, his lips trailing downwards to his neck.

"C-can we-- s-should we uh... hey..." The taller cupped the his cheeks and made him look at him, the fact that his cheeks were lightly tinted with pink not going unnoticed by Yaku.

"What is it? Want me to stop?" He asked concerned, propping himself up with his arms and reaching out for his glasses, since he wanted to be able of seeing him well.

"No it's just..." Lev too raised himself a little, leaning the weight of his body over his elbows and tugging on his bottom lip with his teeth. Yaku swore that he could see his cheeks turning darker. "Do you wanna... try something new?"

He raised his brows in surprise though he knew what Lev was implying. They had talked before about taking things slow, being the first time Yaku was together with a guy and all, so part of him was expecting eagerly that Lev would suggest for them to do it while the other just felt sickly nervous. But still he was curious. His head nodded once and he pulled his glasses carefully up his nose bridge with the tip of his index finger, this time him being the one who felt his cheeks getting warmer.

"We don't need to go all the way now but... I wanna touch you." It was scary how honest and serious Lev sounded, for a moment there it was like Yaku was the one who was 18 years old. The smaller male gulped and moved his eyes towards the mattress, thinking about what 'I wanna touch you' would imply. In their intimate moments, there had been times when they would go a bit further than just kissing. Much like earlier, they would often remove their shirts, kiss each other's torsos... but they would always avoid going any lower, each of them scared of being too rash for the other.

But Yaku was ready for that.

"Y-yeah we can uh like... touch each other maybe?" He mumbled quietly, as if there was anyone around who could hear him saying such a shameful thing.

"Yeah we could..." Lev bit his lip again and placed his hand on top of one of Yaku's, that was resting over the mattress. "Just touching for now."

"Just touching." He repeated, watching closely as Lev reached out to pull his glasses off and placing them carefully over the nightstand. He was too slow, moving too slowly for Yaku's taste. So as soon as Lev turned back to him, he threw himself on top of him (gloriously managing to make the back of his boyfriend's head hit against the headboard) and pressed his lips against his.

Lev just chuckled into the kiss, not quite minding the mild pain on the back of his neck and just wrapping his long arms over Yaku's smaller body, feeling every inch of the skin on his back.

Neither of the men were virgins, yet if one was to observe the events that followed they would probably conclude that Yaku Morisuke or Haiba Lev had never been in bed with someone before. They were both eager to touch each other, hands and knees always almost brushing against that spot but never brave enough to do it. After a few minutes of heated kissing, Yaku finally managed to gather the guts to place his member over the dent on Lev's pants. He noted immediately how it was half hard and in that moment he realized that there was a high probability that him too was sporting a quite embarrassing hard-on. But his thoughts vanished when he heard an unfamiliar noise coming from Lev's lips. It sounded like a mix between a moan and a sigh of relief, and it was like music to Yaku's ears. Like before, he felt almost as if his hand was moving by itself, tracing the length of the other slowly up and down while their tongues curled against each other.

It didn't take long before Lev mirrored his actions and fuck Yaku was even feeling embarrassed with how fast he became undone. Fuck, he was enjoying that more than he expected.

 

* * *

 

"Please tell me you're not gonna wear that to your own birthday dinner..." He could through the mirror Kenma's displeased face, his small scrunched up almost in disgust as Yaku examined his outfit.

"Why? Do you think it's that bad?" As usual Yaku was not very aware of the fact that about 80% of his closet were geeky looking clothes, most of which barely fit him since he didn't really like to wear tight stuff. "It's my nicest casual shirt, a-"

"Morisuke." He was used to Kenma's serious voice, but for some reason the way he spoke in that moment scared him a little. "Let's just go to my place. There's no way I'm gonna let you wear that, specially not in front of your boyfriend."

Kenma was not the kind of person that would pull others, but Yaku almost felt as he was being tugged when he followed the other male out of his bedroom. In all honesty, ever since he started seeing Lev he had been pondering about getting a new set of clothes that would well... not make him look as if he came from a completely different world from his. But his lack of interest, or rather, his continuous attempt of pretending not to care about his looks, usually kept him away from clothe stores and things alike. That and the fact that trying on clothes was a repetitive and very boring process that Yaku would be more than glad to keep himself away from it.

But thankfully they were just going to Kenma's place, and Kenma's place just happened to be a fifteen minute walk away from Morisuke's apartment. 

"Okay my clothes might be a bit big on you since you're a bit shorter but I'm sure we can still find something nice for you to wear." Kenma didn't need to look over his shoulder to know that his friend was probably glaring at him, no one could say Yaku and the word 'short' in the same sentence if they were planning on coming home safely.

"Anyway." Yaku said with a sigh, pulling the covers of Kenma's bed up so he could sit on it. "Just pick something closer to my style okay?"

Kenma hummed for a bit as he opened the closet doors, "I'm afraid none of my clothes are unfashionable, so you're just gonna have to wear whatever I give you."

"Okay that was mean." Yaku prepared himself to throw a pillow at the other man but stopped when Kenma turned around and snickered, carefully placing a black shirt and a pair of jeans over the bed. When Yaku saw him putting a leather jacket he immediately scrunched up his nose. "I'm gonna look like Kuroo."

Kenma snickered and placed his hands on his hips, “So? He dresses well doesn’t he? Now stop whining and change, we have 10 minutes to be at the restaurant. Oh and take off your glasses.”

 

* * *

 

 

Never did Haiba Lev feel so out of place as he did when he walked into the restaurant and saw the table filled with Yaku’s friends. The only person he knew was Kuroo, who seemed to be too entertained with some other guy to notice that he had arrived. The original plan was to meet Yaku in front of his place, but just as he was about to get there he got a text from him saying that he would come with Kenma instead, so Lev should go straight to the restaurant and wait with the rest of the guests.

The thing was that Lev wasn’t a shy person, he could easily make friends and keep casual conversations with people, the only problem was that as soon as he saw the group of people gathered at that table he knew that he had nothing to do with them. For starters they all seemed older than him, with successful stable jobs, nice apartments in the centre of town and equally as successful significant others. It was the first time that Lev realized just how young and out of place he was.

“Yo kid!” He suddenly heard a familiar low voice shouting, noticing Kuroo getting up from his seat and signing him to come closer. And ignoring his doubts, Lev decided to put on the most convincing smile he could and walk over to the table.

“Hey everyone.” Compared to, well, all the time, his voice was lower than usual and he even tipped his head down a little as he looked at all of Yaku’s guests.

“Oh what’s with all the formality?” Kuroo commented right away, patting the empty chair beside him so the younger male would sit down. “Everyone this is Lev, Yaku’s little secret.”

Hearing the word ‘secret’ made him feel a bit awkward, specially because now he had about six 20 something men staring at him with puzzled looks on their faces. But soon enough they all smiled and greeted Lev politely, almost too politely for him to actually feel welcomed. As they all started chatting again, Lev took the opportunity to check his phone to see if Yaku had said something, but his inbox was empty and it was already time for the dinner to start.

“Hey uh Kuroo? Do you know where Yaku is?” He said after poking the dark haired man’s shoulder.

“Hm? You call him by his surname? Dude…” Kuroo snorted and took a sip of his beer, then wrapping his arms around Lev’s shoulders. “Relax man, he went to Kenma’s place to get ready. They’ll be here soon.”

Lev nodded and sighed as quietly as he could, staring at the restaurant’s door like a pet that was missing his owner. He heard the conversation they were having at the table, noting how almost everyone in there went to college with Yaku. They were bringing back memories from those times and in that exact same moment Lev realized that that dinner was going to last a long time.

When the men beside him suddenly started cheering Lev realized that his boyfriend had finally arrived, green eyes glistening as he watched Yaku walking closer to the table along with Kenma. His heart fluttered, almost as if he was seeing him and falling in love for the first time again, and all because of a leather jacket and a bit of eyeliner. Although he could notice that Yaku felt a little uncomfortable in that attire, to him he had never looked more beautiful, even with a very awkward smile on his face as he waved at his guests.

“Sorry for making everyone wait.” The birthday boy apologized, moving to sit on the empty chair right beside Lev. While everyone started chatting again, the two of them just stared at each other, both trying to think about something to say.

 

“You look really-“

“Don’t say anything. You’re just gonna make me even more embarrassed.” Yaku immediately interrupted him, placing a hand lightly against his chest and pushing him away. Lev snickered when he noticed that the older was actually blushing, but he didn’t comment on it.

“Handsome.” He ended up whispering inaudibly, deep inside hoping Yaku had heard it.

 

* * *

 

 

His phone kept buzzing frantically throughout the whole dinner and at a certain point he didn’t even need to pick it up in order to know who it was. There were only three options: the female author he had met a year ago, a bartender from his favourite bar, and a guy that he would often meet in business meetings. And they all had the same purpose: hooking up with Kuroo. Usually he’d drop whatever he was doing and answer the call, then leaving after a few minutes with the excuse of having 'some business to attend to' but that night wasn't going to be the case. Kuroo was known for being the kind of guy that most of the time thinks with his second head, and the one person that would always point that out just happened to be the birthday boy so if he left halfway through the dinner he'd risk giving Yaku more reasons not to like him.

Besides he was having fun.

The group of young men got lost in several rounds of beer and stories from their college days, laughing loudly and just having a good time. Yaku's laughter would sometimes be louder than the others and Kuroo found himself watching the smaller male intently as he did. It was strange but seeing Yaku happy like that was somehow a rare event and Kuroo felt like he needed to keep that carved in his mind, that despite all their fights and differences, he could still experience seeing Yaku laughing like crazy as an old colleague talked about how he once got locked out from his apartment only in his underwear.

But eventually the dinner had to be over. Some of the guests would say that their wives or girlfriends were waiting for them at home, that they had to go somewhere the next day, and the group of men ended up leaving the restaurant.

A few minutes later and the only ones standing in front of the restaurant was himself, Kenma, Yaku and Lev. It was still pretty early in the night so, at least on his behalf, he was sure that a couple more of drinks would be more than welcome. But he had no idea of what the others would say, so he decided to keep his mouth shut and just watch.

Watch as a very drunk Haiba Lev wrapped his arm around Yaku's shoulders and whispered things in his ear. Watch as Yaku's already red cheeks would become darker and how he would push the other away. Watch as Kenma mindlessly checked his social media on his phone without saying anything.

Throughout the whole night Lev had just eaten and drunk without saying much, trying his best to hide his usual overexcited self so he wouldn't embarrass his lover in front of his friends. And now that he was intoxicated his restlessness became even more obvious, obvious enough to make even Kenma notice.

He couldn't stand that whole situation any longer, "Well let's call it a night then?"

"Already?" Yaku sounded surprised, turning his head to Kuroo and leaving Lev frustrated since he was still trying to get his attention.

"Well it's kinda late and uh... I need to drive Kenma home." He could tell that Kenma was looking at him confused, but he knew Kenma and he knew that he would play along.

"Ah yeah. Right." The long haired male hummed, shoving his phone back in his pocket.

"Oh can you drive us too then? Lev is too--" As he was about to finish the sentence he heard Lev blabbering something, his voice dragging. "... yeah. Drive us to my place if you don't mind."

He grabbed his car keys from his pocket and beamed a smirk, jiggling them slightly. "Sure. Let's go then."

 

* * *

 

 

Lev was absolutely unbearable when he was in that state, but Yaku was in such a good mood that night that he actually laughed when Lev stumbled on the stairs instead of scolding him. It was nice being able to laugh like that, to not be so uptight, to not feel the pressure of having to take care of Lev like an older brother. Oh the wonders of alcohol.

He had to make sure Lev didn't fall down as he opened the door to his apartment, holding onto one of his long arms and biting his lip in order not to laugh too loudly. "Ah Jesus... look at yourself."

In response the other said something that was almost inaudible, which also made Yaku laugh. It was good to be home and drunk with your boyfriend.

It was good until he heard very faintly Lev saying in a small voice that he wasn't feeling too well. Yaku's light mood vanished almost completely as he dragged the taller to the bathroom, making him kneel in front of the toilet and just comforting him as he did what he had to do. Despite the stench and the unpleasant sounds, there was still a certain intimacy in that moment that made Yaku realize, despite also being a little intoxicated, that he wanted to always be there for Lev with these kind of things, for as simple and ridiculous they might be. He wanted to be able of rubbing his back as he was, to hush him as he whined about how terrible he felt, to just be there for him.

"G-god I'm sorry." He heard Lev suddenly say, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "T-that was... gross. Fuck."

Yaku chuckled and gave two pats to his back before flushing the toilet. "Don't worry about that, how do you feel?"

"Hm better I guess. Do you have uh... mouthwash or something?" Lev's legs wobbled slightly as he got up, one of his hands moving to cover his eyes from the bathroom lights. Without wasting too much time Yaku handed him what he asked for and walked towards the door.

"I'll let you do your thing. I'll be in the living room okay?" Morisuke just heard the other hum in approval and walked to the other division, letting out a pretty loud sigh as soon as he dropped his body on the couch. As he did he smelled a woosh of a foreign smell, remembering how he was still wearing Kenma's clothes and how he should probably take them off before something bad happened to them. So while hearing gargling noises coming from the bathroom, Yaku decided to remove the clothes he was wearing piece by piece and place them neatly over his coffee table, only to suddenly be interrupted by the noise of the door opening.

The two of them just stared at each other with wide eyes while Yaku was standing in the middle of the living room only in his boxers. He saw how Lev's eyes quickly darted to his lower parts for a few seconds before he looked back at him, just standing by the door as if he was scared to step any closer. Yaku wondered if he was acting like that because of his drunken state.

But the truth was that Lev was just overwhelmed by the whole situation. And on top of that, Yaku was wearing a pair of boxers with tiny faces of Yoda from Star Wars scattered around them, which was undeniably adorable.

"What?" Yaku got flustered though he tried not to show, moving on with his folding of clothes as Lev finally walked into the living room. "I-it's just that these are Kenma's, I don't wanna get any puke on them."

"Oh right. I know." This time it was Lev's turn to flop down the couch and sigh, very much sounding like Yaku earlier. He watched as the smaller ruffled his own hair and walked closer to the couch as well, his arms crossed over his chest as he looked at him.

"I'm gonna put some clothes on and probably make some tea. Want me to bring you something?" Morisuke's tone was back to his usual one, feisty and stern.

Lev just sighed, still not over the fact that Yaku was standing in front of him in his underwear. Not that he had never seen him in such garments, but it was rather surprising to see him like that outside the bedroom, if that made any sense. All sorts of thoughts started filling the singer's mind as his eyes scanned his lover's body, the kind of thoughts that if he said out loud would risk getting smacked.

But the truth was that Yaku was delaying the process of putting on some clothes on purpose. He too was having certain thoughts and, well, since it was his birthday he thought that maybe he didn't need to have as many inhibitions as normally did.

Now that they were finally alone, it was the perfect timing.

"I got you a present." Lev said as he got up from the couch, standing inches away from the other and looking down at him. "It's nothing special but... I hope you like it.”

Yaku squinted his brown eyes at the male as he tilted his head back to look at him. "If you have a ribbon tied around your dick I swear to god Lev I'm making you sleep in the bathroom."

Lev laughed and shook his head, grabbing his phone and his earplugs. "Don't worry, I'm more creative than that." He smirked, noticing how his boyfriend was staring at him suspiciously. A few seconds later he carefully placed the earplugs on each of Yaku's ears, despite still feeling a bit dizzy and almost aiming at his eye.

"What is this..." Yaku mumbled, only to then be interrupted by the sound of someone plucking an acoustic guitar.

And then he heard that voice. That beautiful, fuzzy voice that most of the times was so loud and obnoxious but that now sounded soft and quiet.

The lyrics were what got him the most. They weren't perfect, but they still felt awfully intimate and personal. He could tell that it was Lev that had written that song and, though at first it felt hard to believe, that it was about and for Yaku. He just stood frozen in his spot as he listened to the whole piece, hands placed on top of his ears as if he could listen to it better if he did so, not even being able of meeting Lev's eyes with how flustered he was feeling.

A few minutes later the song was over and he gulped, feeling the other carefully removing the earplugs from him before he spoke. "So... what did you think?"

"Lev..." Yaku met with those green eyes and took a deep breath, scratching his head as he tried to figure out what to say.

"I'm thinking about adding this to our next album and maybe perform it at the band competition" Lev too was nervous, he could tell just by the way his voice shook as he spoke.

From all his 27 years of living no one had ever done something as meaningful for his birthday as creating something for him. His past girlfriends would usually buy him gifts or do a certain kind of favors, which wasn't at all bad. But to actually have someone write a song, a full 3 minute long song just about him was part scary part endearing. Scary because he never thought that someone would appreciate him to the point of doing something like that. Endearing because, well, it was always nice to hear someone praising you in the most poetic way they could, even if you knew that you had a thousand of flaws. Morisuke realized that there was only one response possible so without warning he jumped and threw himself at the taller, leaning his head up so he could capture his lips.

Though he hated to admit it, he was glad Lev was taller than him, so he could actually grab him and stay in the same place as he did that.

Despite the strong taste of mint, Yaku kept his lips glued to his for a long while before finally pulling back, his forehead leaning against his. "You... you're so weird. Who even writes songs about other people like that."

"I hate to break this to you but most songwriters do." Lev chuckled softly and Yaku felt like his heart would drop just with how lovely it sounded. "I will take that as you liking it?"

"God Lev don't make me say it out loud, you know how I feel." Yaku wrapped his arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, burying his face against his shoulder and feeling Lev's large hands pressed against the small of his back.

"I do." Lev whispered quietly right before he pressed his lips against Yaku's, his hands gripping onto his body gently so he wouldn't fall. That kiss was different from the one before, it was a bit messier and more passionate, their tongues gliding against each other between their lips. He became so focused in the kiss that he had to slowly drop Yaku back to the floor, never taking his hands off of him however.

Yaku moved his hands to Lev's cheeks and tried coaxing him into a deeper kiss, parting his lips to give him more access and just pressing his bare body against his. But after a while he realized that a kiss wasn't going to be enough.

"Lev..." He pulled back, looking at him through his eyelashes.

"Yeah?"

"Let's... uh--"

"Yes. Please."

 

* * *

 

 

He had loved how Lev would always ask for permission before kissing him, how cautious he was, but now he needed something else.

Standing in front of the other male, that was sitting by the edge of the bed, his hands mindlessly playing with the ends of his hair in the back of his neck. Yaku molded his lips as much as he could to his in hopes that the kiss would become more heated. But it seemed like Lev was holding back, his hands just resting on the end of his back, aching to move lower but not daring to. He got frustrated, tugging on his lover's bottom lip with his teeth to try getting a stronger response. And what he got were a series of surprised whimpers that almost sounded like moans.

"You know..." Yaku panted out after pulling out from the kiss. "If we're gonna do this let's just... drop the formalities okay?"

"F-formalities?" Lev's face was a mixture of horny and confused, which to Yaku was quite an hilarious combination.

"Yeah like..." He smiled softly and looked down, letting out a sigh. "Just touch me the way you want to. No need to ask for permission or stuff because if we're really gonna do this I don't want it to be stiff. I want it to be like... natural."

Lev's cheeks became darker and he nodded, biting his bottom lip before looking up at his lover. "Natural. Got it." And almost as if some sort of switch had flipped in his head, he tightened the grip of his arms around the smaller male and pulled him into another kiss. This time it was messier, it had teeth and tongues colliding against each other but still it wasn't at all unpleasant. Yaku found himself getting lost into the kiss, his hands moving slowly down from Lev's chest to the hem of his shirt.

"Stretch your arms." He whispered against his lips, tugging the said shirt upwards so he could take it off. He carefully pulled his shirt over his head when he suddenly realized that he wasn't going to be able of taking off Lev's shirt. He stared at his long stretched arms and huffed in frustration, reaching out to shake said arms. "Why the fuck are your arms so fucking big?!"

The taller male just laughed and easily removed the offending piece of clothing, tossing it to the floor. "You don't like them?"

"No I hate them." Yaku angrily said, glad to know that by the way Lev laughed he knew that he wasn't being honest. "I hate your cock-blocking gigantic body."

"Aw baby, come here." He laughed and tugged Yaku to his lap, latching his lips once more against his.

There was nothing strange about kissing, Yaku was already familiar with what made him and Lev feel good while having a make-out session. However he was about to enter unknown territory. Now Yaku was a smart guy, he had done his research and he knew about the mechanics of it all, but what seemed the scariest for him was the fact that lots of sources stated that the process could be a little uncomfortable on the first time. And what worried him the most was the fact that besides of having the feeling that Lev was the kind of person that would always be on top, he was curious about how it would feel to be the one to bottom.

Lev had given up on letting Yaku take the lead. He had managed to lay his boyfriend down on the bed, hovering on top of him while planting a series of kisses on his jaw and neck. Morisuke had his fingers threading his gray hair, quiet and breathless noises escaping his lips with each kiss the other would press. Despite not being the type of person that likes being dominated like that, he was still loving the way Lev was just taking control of his body, touching him in places that made everything feel hotter and hotter. He felt like everything in his life had led up for that moment, as perverted that might seem. But the truth was that he had always longed to be touched and wanted the way Lev did, it made him feel appreciated, like he meant something to someone.

His lean hands slipped between their bodies so he could unbutton Lev's tight jeans, tugging them down as much as he could and chuckling into the kiss as he felt the pants getting stuck on the taller's body. "Sorry." He mumbled.

"Don't worry about it." Lev stood up from the bed and quickly took off his pants. When he rose his head, he saw his lover sprawled on the bed wearing nothing but his underwear and sporting the kind of blush he thought he would never see on him. In a split second his heart started pounding like crazy with how handsome he looked just laying like that. He shook his head slightly in an attempt to regain his focus, then climbing back on top of him and leaning his forehead against his. "So, how are we gonna do this?"

Yaku bit his lip and placed his hands on Lev's bare shoulders. "How do you think we should do it?"

"I dunno I just uh... do you wanna top or--"

"Oh god..." Yaku sighed and covered his face with his hands, shaking his head. How hard it was to admit something like that, specially someone as proud as Yaku Morisuke. "Why are you asking me that? Aren't you more experienced at this?"

"That's exactly why I'm asking you, I need to know what you're more comfortable with." He looked at him worried, struggling to remove the hands that were covering his lover's face.

"Ugh fine! L-let's try you doing it to me or whatever. Let's just get this over with I'm about to lose my mood." He didn't want to sound as angry as he did but that was something that he could no longer control. Hesitantly he moved his hands away from his features to look at Lev, noticing how flustered yet excited he looked. "But you better be gentle ya hear me?!" 

Suddenly Lev just dropped his whole body on top of him, his arms squeezing him firmly against him as he mumbled, "I love you."

 

 

The internet was right, it was uncomfortable. 

Being the one who was more experienced in it, Yaku let his boyfriend take over the preparation process but never did he think that he would pray for someone's fingers to get smaller. Since he was aware of Yaku's discomfort, Lev made sure to be as careful as he could so he wouldn't hurt him, being extremely cautious with every single move he made. After a few minutes into it, things started feeling differently though. Sounds that he never thought he was able to make came out of his lips and though he felt like he should have, he was too busy focusing on what he was feeling to feel embarrassed.

Lev curled his fingers slightly and Yaku realized why people actually enjoyed doing that. A wave of pleasure rushed from the bottom of his body upwards, leaving his mind hazy and lost in what he was feeling. He had gone past his embarrassment and gave up on hiding his moans, knowing deep inside that if he let them out it would make the experience much more pleasurable for Lev as well. He, on the other hand, had his eyes glued to his boyfriend's face, watching lustfully as it contorted beautifully with his ministrations. Yaku's lips were red and glistening, parted a little as those beautiful noises kept coming out from the back of his throat, gradually becoming louder the more Lev touched him.

"F-fuck Lev--" He suddenly complained, though he was very much enjoying it. "D-don't-- I don't... p-pull out, fuck!"

Confusion and worry filled Lev's mind as he carefully slipped his fingers out of his boyfriend, hoping that he didn't do anything that made him uncomfortable or worse. "W-what's wrong?"

Yaku noticed how terrified his lover looked and, despite the haziness in his mind, let out a soft chuckle. "Nothing silly it's just... I uh... I was getting close and yeah..."

"Oh..." The half-russian man sighed in relief, placing one of his hands on Yaku's waist and brushing his warm skin with his thumb. A small proud smile etched on his lips, "Getting close uh?"

"Don't get too cocky, you know very well what you were doing." He slapped his boyfriend's shoulder gently only to then rub it tenderly with the palm of his hand. "Should I help you with the condom?"

The Yaku Morisuke from back then would shrivel just at the thought of touching another guy's penis, but now he was anticipating it. Longing for it, actually. Lev had given him all the attention he deserved but he too wanted to give him some, after all it must be quite painful to make your lover moan like that without getting anything in return. So before the other could answer, Yaku sat up on the bed and grabbed one of the small tin-foiled packages he had waiting on top of his nightstand. He could tell Lev was nervous by the way he was breathing so loudly as he carefully opened the condom, taking a glance at him only to find him watching intently what he was doing.

And then he got an idea. A brilliant one actually.

"Take off your boxers and lay down please." Yaku said, holding the opened package between two of his fingers and watching as Lev slowly and curiously obeyed his request. He didn't want to look at him, hoping that he could keep his prude mode on, but Lev's naked body was so unbelievably attractive to him that he couldn't help it. He watched as Lev's member sprung free from his underwear, eyes scanning every vein and curve it had almost as if he was studying it. He never thought he would ever think something like this but fuck Lev did have a pretty cock (not that he had seen that many in his life but yeah). Once he heard the faint noise of his underwear being dropped on the floor, Yaku crawled on top of his boyfriend's body so he could attach his lips to his, the condom being carefully placed back on the nightstand for later. This time there were seriously no inhibitions, his hands explored the whole extension of Lev's body without avoiding any spots. Much like he had done with him a few minutes ago, Yaku wanted to make Lev tremble under his touch, though he had agreed on being the bottom this time he wanted to make sure Lev didn't forget that he too could be dominant.

For as nerdy as it sounded, he was glad that he had done some research about it before sleeping with his boyfriend, because now he knew just what to do to get him going.

Slowly Yaku dragged his lips away from the other's, moving them down to his neck, collarbone, and then chest. He was moving so painfully slowly that he was even getting annoyed at himself for doing so. His brown eyes darted to Lev's face once his lips reached the softness of one of his nubs, watching a crease form between Lev's thin eyebrows as his tongue played with it. He looked absolutely adorable, the noises that left his lips making him even more so and Yaku's pride swelled up with the realization that he was the one making him be like that. But soon his lips left that spot and continued their journey down Lev's chest, leaving soft wet kisses on his skin as they reached his stomach and stopping at the navel. Yaku looked up again, letting his warm breath hit his soft skin and watching how he would react. He had one of his hands placed over his eyes, the small spaces between his long fingers revealing that he was with his eyes closed and was sporting a almost desperate look on his face.

Yaku smirked and after torturing him for a few more seconds he finally moved his lips to Lev's member. Barely touching it, his lips brushed across his length from the base to the tip, tongue grazing slightly its swollen and soft skin once he got there. Lev arched his back and let out a desperate groan, opening his eyes slightly to look at Yaku as if to beg for him to just do whatever he was planning to. The smaller male snickered quietly before he wrapped his slender fingers around Lev and pumping him slowly. He couldn't turn back now, he had his mind set on something that he was sure would turn Lev into a complete mess. I'm not very experienced at this so please don't expect much, he thought about saying it out loud but he knew that if he did he would lose a bit of the power he had over Lev in that moment, so he just licked his lips and went for it.

He had received blowjobs before, so kind of had an idea of what felt good or not. Still he decided to be cautious, taking Lev's tip into his mouth slowly before starting to bob his head. In an instant, the other started getting undone, his moans filling up the room while Yaku worked on him. Though he wanted to do more, to take the fullness of his length into his mouth, he knew that for a beginner that would be too much and that if he tried it the result wouldn't be very pleasant for either of them. So he stuck with what he could, his fingers still wrapped around the base as he pumped his lover into his mouth in a slow and painful pace.

"Fuck Mori..." Lev moaned out, voice breaking slightly. The taste wasn't exactly the best but hearing such lewd things coming out of Lev's lips made up for everything else. Yaku's confidence received a huge boost whenever he would spill out his name in such a lustful tone, making him even more eager to move faster.

But his plan wasn't to have his boyfriend release in his mouth. So without much warning, Yaku slowly pulled away from his member, panting softly and smiling as he heard a whine coming from the taller. "All good baby?"

Whatever Lev had said to Yaku it just seemed like some nonsensical word that could only come out from someone who had just gotten sucked off. Morisuke laughed and stretched his arm to grab the condom, carefully pinching its tip before rolling it down Lev's girth. That sight suddenly made his heart beat like crazy, not just for excitement he was feeling but also for the nervousness that started taking over his body. They were surely going to do it now, there was no turning back. Yaku wanted it, he wanted it badly and he was sure that Lev did too. But he knew that it wasn't going to be easy.

Lev's gray hair was even messier than usual but to Yaku that made him look even more attractive than he already was, besides he was sure his wasn't looking the best either. Feeling his limbs shaking as he rose on the bed, Yaku realized that the only thing that could calm him down was to touch his boyfriend, immediately wrapping his arms around his neck and pulling him into a messy kiss. Lev's hands almost instantly moved to hold onto Yaku's waist, flipping them over and kissing him passionately. Both their bodies were burning up, begging to be touched by each other, to melt into each other. Yaku's nervousness got lost between the thoughts of having Lev inside him again and he found himself pressing his body even closer to his, hips bucking, hardened members rubbing against each other as both the young men moaned into the kiss. He could feel Lev's heart beating frantically inside his chest, knowing that his was beating the same way.

The kiss broke and the two of them just stared into each other's eyes. No words needed to be said, they both could tell what they were thinking. Without breaking eye contact, Yaku parted his legs and placed them around Lev's waist, pulling him closer to him so he could position himself. Lev immediately got the hint and aligned himself with his boyfriend's entrance, visibly gulping as he waited to read some sort of permission on Yaku's face. The smaller closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

_It's going to happen, I want this. I want you._

The soft nod that Yaku did was more than enough confirmation and Lev firmly wrapped his arms around the other's smaller frame, feeling his warmth enveloping him slowly as he carefully bucked his hips. Yaku gasped at the feeling, telling himself in a mantra that it would get better the more Lev eased into him, but still he didn't control his face as it twisted in pain. The singer couldn't bear seeing him like that, latching his lips against his and pulling him into a deep kiss to distract from the uncomfortable feeling. Yaku felt delightfully tight around him but he couldn't get carried away, he needed to go slow, be gentle, respect his body and respond to its needs as much as he could.

"God..." Yaku whispered, still visibly in pain once Lev pushed all in. He commanded his body to relax, to ease up a little and to get over the pain as quickly as possible because he couldn't bear the thought of not pleasuring Lev. His fingers dug into the soft skin of his shoulders and he opened his eyes, noticing how there was a mix of pleasure and worry on his lover's face. He looked so beautiful with his cheeks pink like that, with his green eyes dark with lust and his fringe scattered around his forehead. Yaku found himself smiling again, his body raising slightly from the bed so he could press a series of tender kisses against his pink lips.

"Move." He managed to say against his lips, gasping again as his boyfriend slowly obeyed to his request. Lev leaned his forehead against Yaku's while forcing his hips to move slowly, soft breaths coming out of his lips since the tightness around him was taking him to bliss.

When he finally heard Yaku moaning he thought he was going to burst. He picked up the pace of his thrusts and kissed him again, one of his hands slipping between their warm bodies to wrap his fingers around his boyfriend's aching length. And suddenly everything became too hot. It was nothing like neither of them had ever experienced, their bodies just moved into each other's almost instinctively, searching for angles that would give more pleasure to them. Their voices melted into one another in between kisses, quiet breathless moans soon turning louder the more they got lost in their bodies.

Desperately quiet I love you's slipped out of both their lips, followed by a series of moans that would be muffled by kisses or intensified by neck kisses and such. Yaku's hands moved across his boyfriend's back, pulling him closer in hopes that he could feel even more of his skin pressed against his, and then they moved lower. His dying curiosity sprung up again as he slipped his hands to Lev's lower back, eyes opening slightly so he could see his reaction as he took a generous grab of his ass. Lev shut his eyes firmly and groaned, moving his hand away from Yaku's member and holding the smaller in an angle that would let him thrust in a different way. And then that familiar feeling spread across Morisuke's body. His voice raised a pitch, almost in an embarrassing way, moaning along with each of his lover's nudges into his spot. 

He had never felt that good in his whole life, in fact he always thought that he would never deserve feeling that good, but Lev's touches seemed to say otherwise. Whenever Lev's hands touched his burning skin it was like he was assuring him of how important he was for him, how good he was making him feel. He could feel his release getting closer, heat starting to pool up on his lower stomach as transparent pearls of pre-cum oozed out of his member and by the way that Lev was groaning he could tell that he too was getting there. The younger never let go of Yaku's body, holding him close to himself almost in a protective way as he thrusted into him.

"Oh god Lev..." Yaku mumbled, their closeness only making things feel even hotter. He wasn't expecting that to coax Lev into picking up the pace again but the truth was that he did and Yaku found himself becoming even more undone underneath his body. Tension was building up quickly and with only a few more thrusts he found himself making noises that he never thought he would be able of making. “Lev--!"

His whole body shook as pearly white strings came out of his member, arms flinging to hold onto his boyfriend's shoulders tightly while his orgasm swept through his body. Lev groaned loudly and continued snapping his hips into him until he filled up the condom with a cracked moan. Neither of them were able of coming back from reality immediately, eyes firmly shut as their bodies recovered from their high.

Lev collapsed on top of Yaku, making the latter yelp from the sudden weight being pressed against his body, but he didn't complain. Instead he welcomed it, his hands moving to play with the ends of his boyfriend's hair as they caught their breaths. They both were curious to know what the other thought but shyness took over them, despite their not-so-shy act from a few minutes ago. Keeping his promise of being gentle and careful, Lev slipped himself out of his boyfriend and tied a knot around the condom after taking it off, throwing it at the nearest trash bin and failing but being too lazy to go pick it up. With that Yaku finally broke the silence.

"You know you're gonna pick that up right?"

"I know, let me just cuddle my boyfriend first okay?" Lev looked at him with a wide smile, making sure that he would forever keep in his mind the image right in front of him. Yaku's short hazel hair was all sticking up, his cheeks were tinted with the lightest and cutest shade of pink and though he knew the other would kill him if he said that out loud, he just looked straight up adorable.

"Tsk fine..." Yaku sighed, closing his eyes briefly as his fingers threaded through Lev's hair. "I love you"

Still watching the smaller's face closely, Lev inched his face upwards and pressed his lips against his in a loving kiss to which Yaku immediately replied, then pulling back to whisper almost inaudibly, "I love you too."

 

* * *

 

He looked curiously at the label with the number '20' that was placed over his chest, hearing his bandmates complain about the order of the performances since they were going to be the last ones to step on the stage. But Lev didn't mind, he was more focused on sending Yaku texts telling about how nervous he was and how cute he looked wearing a large sticker over his shirt (with a selfie attached). His bandmates eventually did complain about it, calling their singer back to life since they should take the time they have to practice the two songs they were going to perform. He huffed and shoved his phone back in his pocket, following the rest of the group to the rehearsal room when all of the sudden he heard someone speaking.

"Well well look who it is." 

Nishinoya was the first one to turn around, glaring at the tall blond man that was standing behind them with a cocky grin on his face. The last time he saw him he had just had a whole bottle of beer poured on top of his head, so he couldn't exactly smile the same way he did. Everyone around him just stared at the tall guy with a puzzled look on their faces, the only one who recognized him being Tanaka who immediately yelled a very angry: "What the fuck are you doing here?!"

The man gave a loud chuckle and placed his hands confidently on each side of his hips. There was something strangely annoying about the way he looked at them and, even if Lev had no idea who he was, he had the feeling that he wasn't exactly the type of person to be trusted. He saw a small group of people watching the scene on the other side, but before he could take a closer look on their faces the blond man spoke again. He quickly glanced at Lev, making the tall man shudder.

"Is that your new lead singer? Boy..." The man walked closer to Lev, almost as if he was evaluating him. No, not almost, he was definitely evaluating the fuck out of him. The half-russian couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable, but he had the feeling that whatever was happening had nothing to do with him. So he kept his mouth shut and watched as the blond guy continued speaking. "I can't wait to kick your asses. You know last year we ended up in second place in this competition, this year we're definitely gonna win this shit."

The smaller male snorted and glared at the other, "Have you gotten used to it yet? Being second place."

The man in the undercut clenched his fists and got ready to yell something, but he was interrupted by a low monotonous voice coming from his back. "Terushima. Time to rehearse." Lev noticed a blond guy in glasses looking at the whole setup with an unamused look on his face, followed by another blonde girl and a guy with his face sprinkled by freckles that looked like he was about to shit his pants. His attention went back to Terushima and he smiled slightly, watching the male walk back to what was probably his band as he tried saying more discouraging words to Nishinoya.

"He's still a fucking asshole I can't believe you were actually in a band with him Yuu." Tanaka scoffed, glaring at the now empty spot where the guy had stood earlier.

"Wait what?" Lev looked confused at his bandmates, waiting for an explanation about what had just happened. "Who was that guy? Y-you were in a band with him?"

Hinata, who looked as if his soul had escaped from his body, waddled closer to Lev and patted his chest with both his hands. "D-don't worry about it, let's just p-practice for now. The contest will start in a b-bit--"

Noticing how everyone was suddenly taking their instruments Lev decided to not ask any more about what had happened, since it seemed like it had left everyone tense and if they wanted to win that contest then they needed to lighten up. He followed everyone to the other room, grabbing his phone so he could tell what had happened to Yaku. As he did, he noticed how he had sent a text to him a few minutes ago and, even if the text didn’t say anything cute or endearing, Lev still smiled like an idiot just by remembering that he was dating that man. Everyone around them agreed that they were almost polar opposites, some even said that their relationship was doomed because of that same reason. But Lev would rather listen to those who would always say that ‘opposites attract’ because he really believed that.

When they finally reached the practice room they suddenly heard an excited male voice announcing that the competition was going to start and Lev could feel his blood rushing down his legs. He was used already used to performing in front of others, but the sudden pressure of it being a competition made it all seem like it was 10 times harder than it usually was. His long fingers were cold yet sweaty, shaking as he took his acoustic guitar out of its case, his body suddenly turned cold even though in that room the air was pretty hot and stuffy. Before he could tell anyone that he wasn’t feeling all that well, he suddenly heart Taketora speaking.

“Are you guys sure you wanna play the ballad?”

Almost as if instantly, Lev’s dizziness vanished for a moment and he rose his head, furrowing his brows at his drummer. “Why?” He said, for some reason sounding angrier than anyone in there had ever heard.

Even Taketora was a bit taken aback when he heard him. “Well I mean… this is a contest, right? I bet all the bands are gonna play hyper songs and stuff. If we play a ballad it might be a bit—“

The tall male just clenched his jaw and started tuning his guitar. Earlier that week they had discussed about their performance, and when he suggested that he wanted to play the song he had written for Yaku everyone seemed to agree. He was proud of that song, he wanted everyone to hear his declaration to the man he loved, even if that man probably didn’t approve of something as embarrassing as that.

“We should play Lev’s song because it’s the only one we have that’s totally original.” Tanaka said all of the sudden, the seriousness in his voice making everyone shiver. It was usual for him to have disagreements with Taketora. And by disagreements meaning very heated discussions that would always end with Nishinoya and Lev holding each of them, discussions that were most of the time either because one of them had messed up too much during practice or about pointless little things that those two would somehow turn into a competition. Once again, the atmosphere around Tolstoi was getting tenser but Lev remained observant, letting his bandmate defend him. “Besides we’ll play another one after that’ll get everybody pumped.”

Lev looked at his shaved-head friend with the smallest of smiles, thanking him silently, then watched as Taketora bit his bottom lip, keeping himself from saying anything else. The older male just moved to one of the corners of the room with his drumsticks and watched the rest with a scowl. No one actually paid attention to him, they were more than accustomed to him throwing fits like that whenever Tanaka ‘won’ an argument, which surprisingly lately it had been happening often. Nishinoya had said that it was because of his girlfriend, that she had somehow been able to put some sense into Tanaka’s hard head. Either way, it was just refreshing not to have the two fighting like a pair of bulls over pointless things.

“Okay so let’s go through the songs a few times and then watch the show.” Nishinoya said as he sat on one of the chairs in the room and positioned his bass guitar on his lap. “I’m sure we’re gonna do great so, let’s lighten up the mood hm?”

Everyone in the room smiled, after all it was impossible not to whenever Nishinoya would say that kind of encouraging words. Hinata happily clapped his hands twice and rose them in fists. “LET’S DO THIS!”

 

* * *

 

The man fixed the collar of his shirt mindlessly as he went through the list of contestants, glasses almost at the tip of his nose and a ball-pen wiggling between two of his fingers. He liked this sort of events because of the possibility of finding real talent, but he hated how he would have to sit by himself with a bunch of other music industry magnates at a lonely table right in front of the stage. He knew Iwaizumi was only a few meters away from him, but not being able of telling him his usual snarky little comments was almost like a torture.

Besides, the guy sitting next to him smelled like he had just drank like 6 bottles of whisky and the stench was unbearable.

He rose his head and watched as an enthusiastic young man walked up to the stage with the mic in his hand, in a few moments he would have to get up from his seat and wave at the audience, and flash his signature smile. It was all pretty staged and fake, but he was already so used to it that he couldn’t really tell anymore what was his real smile and what wasn’t. As soon as the MC started introducing the judges for the competition, Tooru’s lips immediately curled into their usual position and he turned his head to see the people that were being called out. He knew all of them, he had known them ever since he started his business. They were all competitors so his relationship with them was always very polite, with the pinch of toxicity that it would only be normal to have with people like them. Besides him, there was only another young person at the table, a woman who was the vocal coach of many famous idols and singers, and if he had to be honest she was the only person he tolerated. The others were rich, middle aged men that thought it would be a good idea to invest in young boys and girls who wanted to pursue a musical career, most of them had idol groups under their companies and made them work to exhaustion just for profit. Tooru couldn’t understand what they were even doing there since it was a band competition, but to question it would mean that he was interested in them and he didn’t want in any way to show that.

Unlike the rest of his fellow judges, Oikawa Tooru’s company focused on ‘raw’ talented, like he liked to say. He’d rather find singers and bands in the streets than to go through all the formalities of an audition like every year those men’s companies would do. That’s why he would never turn down the offer to be a judge at a band contest, even if most of the winners so far hadn’t chosen AOBA Records to represent them. But maybe this year would be different.

No, this year would definitely be different.

Oikawa removed his glasses and rose up from his seat when he heard the MC announce his name, then turning to the audience and flashing an even wider version of his smile at them. Ah all the screaming he heard from the public. He took longer than the other judges did to sit back down just to rile his fans up a little more, after all it wasn’t easy to find a CEO with his own fanbase. He was very proud of that actually, so proud in fact that sometimes out of boredom he would check his fansite out of pure narcissism just to check what his fans had been saying about him. Iwaizumi called him trash for doing that, but he didn’t care.

“Ah… and so it begins.” Upon hearing the drunk man beside him announcing that, he immediately turned his attention to the stage, watching as a group of young people nervously stepped on it.

Tooru smiled slightly and put his glasses back on, looking at the sheet in front of him and reading ‘Tolstoi’ on the 20th position. “Hm let’s see how it goes.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Nope. Forget it. We’re totally late.” Kenma mumbled as he started at his phone’s screen. “The contest started 10 minutes ago and in this traffic, I doubt that we’ll get there in time for the first half.”

Yaku was glad he was sitting in the backseat behind Kenma otherwise he would have reached out to strangle Kuroo’s throat with all his might. He had promised Lev that he would go see the competition and cheer for Tolstoi along with Kenma, and it was all fun and games until Kuroo decided to come along and offer him a ride. Knowing Kuroo, he shouldn’t be surprised with them being late, whenever he was involved it was only a matter of time before things went downhill. Well even if that wasn’t exactly true, but in Yaku’s mind the words ‘Kuroo Tetsurou’ and ‘bad luck’ walked together hand in hand no matter the contest.

“God fucking dammit Tetsurou I’m so fucking shoving my shoe up your ass when we get there.” Morisuke grumbled angrily, grabbing his phone to check the time again and to see the text Lev had sent him. “… apparently they’re the last ones to perform but Jesus fucking Christ if we actually miss my boyfriend’s performance because of you being late I’m seriously gonna—"

“God how raunchy, Yaku Morisuke. No swearing in this car unless you’re getting your dick sucked.” Kuroo smirked and looked at the other through one of the mirrors. “We’re gonna be there in time, chillax man. You’re gonna see your boyfriend performing and you’re gonna thank me later.”

Yaku groaned both at the thought that Kuroo might have had his dick sucked right where he was sitting and out of anger, “First of all: ew. Second, I’m so gonna rip your face off when we get there…”

“Lame. No one uses chillax nowadays Kuroo, you’re so getting old.” Kenma added, eyes never leaving his phone’s screen.

“Uh? Really? Aw man I need to keep up so I can be one of the cool kids.”

The fact that none of his friends were sharing his anger made Yaku even more upset. He watched them as they playfully bickered about how uncool Kuroo was with a very visible frown on his face, the two of them seemed to be having fun despite their actual misfortune. In that exact moment Yaku swore to himself that he would never go anywhere with those two ever again.

As he turned his attention to the window Yaku finally found some peace, memories of the night before coming back as he watched the scenery that was passing by very, very slowly.

Fucking had become a little bit of a habit for him and Lev, and for various reasons. Whether it was a ‘good luck’ fuck, such as the one that happened the night before, or make up sex, they just seemed to keep up with a certain sexual activity schedule that Yaku never thought would be able of doing. Now that he had had a taste of what it was to be with Haiba Lev in such an intimate level, Yaku wanted to try more, explore the various ways that they could make both him and his lover cry in pleasure. That of course implied that he had tried being on top and he actually managed to do it exactly 20 hours ago. Pictures of how Lev’s pale skin flushed with his touches and how his face twisted in pleasure flashed through his mind in a beautiful yet dangerous montage.

“Fuck…” He suddenly mumbled, shaking his head slightly and trying to think of something else. Having a boner inside Kuroo’s car was not part of the things he wanted to experience.

“What did I say? No swearing in daddy’s car.” Kuroo made sure to get rid of any signs of arousal that had sparked a few moments ago. And this time Yaku made sure to actually reach out to hit him out of sheer and pure anger.

“You make me sick.” He scoffed before sitting back, pretending to be upset as he heard Kenma’s soft laughter.

 

* * *

 

It was too much of wishful thinking for them to manage to have seats in the theatre by the time they arrived, but Yaku didn’t mind. All that mattered was that by the time they arrived the band playing had the number 15 glued to each of the member’s clothes and that he would be able of seeing Lev perform.

He wanted to send him a text to wish him good luck, but he had heard that saying such things before a performance would actually have the opposite effect so he remained still. On his side Kenma was still looking through his phone, raising his hand slightly to draw the other guys’ attention before he spoke.

“I’m gonna grab something to drink, it’s boiling hot in here. Want something?”

“Y-yeah some water would be nice.” Yaku said, turning his attention to his friend. “What about K-“

Would it really be a surprise for Kuroo no longer being with them? No, but it still was pretty annoying for him to just vanish like that whenever he was in a place filled with people. But Yaku was too tired to complain, instead he just shrugged and looked back at the stage.

“’Kay then, I’ll be right back.” Kenma walked out of the venue, leaving Yaku all by himself as he watched the band performing. There was something oddly familiar about them, even if he had never seen them in his life. The lead singer seemed like the total opposite of Lev, shy and insecure, looking around at his bandmates nervously as he sang. Everyone in that band seemed pretty clean-cut, except for one member. The guy Yaku assumed to be the lead guitarist was sporting blond hair with an undercut and by the way he way too excited he assumed that he was just filling in for someone else. Still their style, although a little different, still had some resemblances to the music Tolstoi made and, in all honesty, they were pretty catchy.

While that band was playing Yaku took the opportunity to look at the audience, since he had a privileged view to it given that he was standing right in the back. The judge panel was sitting right in front of the stage and it didn’t take long for him to recognize the man that had offered the record deal to Lev’s band. He had his head down, looking at the sheets of paper he had in front of him with a rather uninterested look on his face. Yaku couldn’t help but feel a little suspicious of the man, after all he seemed to be somehow connected to Kuroo and that was always a bad sign.

“Ah you’re here today too?” A low, slightly raspy voice spoke from his side and Yaku turned his head only to find Oikawa’s assistant standing a few meters away from him.

“Oh uh…” _What was his name again? Fuck…_ “Hi.”

The man stepped closer to Yaku until he was standing beside him, staring at the stage. “Here to see Tolstoi?”

“Yeah.” _My boyfriend’s in that band_ , he thought about saying as a reason for him to be there, but he didn’t know how the other man would react so he kept it to himself. The only thing he could do was to make small talk. “See anyone interesting tonight?”

“Hm a few yes. Oikawa’s not paying any attention to anyone though, he’s really looking forward for your boyfriend’s band.” _He knows?!_. Yaku felt his heart stop and his cheeks heating up. Of course that guy knew about it, he knew Kuroo after all. The man left out the kind of sigh that could come out from very exhausted people and turned his head to the smaller male. “We’ll see how it goes.”

He didn’t even notice Kenma sneaking from the other side, only finding out about his presence when he felt something wet and cold being pressed against his bare arm.

“Brought you water.” He said as soon as Morisuke looked at him. “Who’s that?”

Yaku sighed and nodded his head a little to thank his friend, then downing some of the water and stepping a bit away so Kenma could see the other man. “Kenma this is uh…”

“Iwaizumi Hajime. I work for AOBA Records.” He was relieved for the brown haired man introducing himself to his friend, he wouldn’t have to go through the embarrassment of not knowing his name.

“Ah you work for that flashy guy? Kuroo’s been talking about him a lot lately. It’s annoying.” Something must have lit up inside Iwaizumi’s eyes because as soon as he heard Kenma calling Oikawa annoying he quickly moved to stand beside him.

The two men started hitting off surprisingly well and Yaku couldn’t tell if he was either relieved or confused. Either way, he decided to turn his attention back to the stage and watched as the band that had been playing walked out from it. Lev would come up any time soon, he could feel his heart thumping in anticipation, his palms getting sweatier as he waited.

 

* * *

 

 _Ah finally_ , Oikawa pulled his glasses up and leaned back against his chair, staring at the stage with a smirk as he saw a familiar tall, lanky, light-haired figure walking towards the front with a guitar in his hand and a chair on the other. The other members soon followed, each one of them carrying a chair as well, except for the drummer. The whole apparatus was surprising, specially since the vocalist seemed to be holding an acoustic guitar and not his usual electric red one. He cleared his throat and watched as the MC asked the band to introduce themselves, his eyes focusing on the vocalist that seemed to have problems adjusting the microphone.

“Uh… good evening everyone.” The young man spoke, the nervous smile on his lips too obvious for Oikawa not to notice. “We’re Tolstoi and we’re gonna start with a slow song.”

_Ah so that’s what’s going on._

“Anyway… I hope you enjoy the show.” The boy stared at the rest of the band before starting to pluck on his guitar’s strings sweetly.

From what he had heard a few weeks ago, a hyper, slightly rough rock-style, whatever was coming out from that band that day was a slow yet pleasant surprise. Oikawa had the feeling that the other judges weren’t having the same thoughts as him, mainly because they all seemed to have a winner in their minds already. And deep inside, he agreed with who they were rooting for, even if he was really hoping that Tolstoi would manage to win them over.

The ballad was moving, though it wasn’t a winning song. The lyrics were romantic but not overly cheesy, an actual good surprise, but by the way everyone in the panel seemed indifferent he could tell that things weren’t going to go the way he wanted. He kept his eyes glued on the tall lead singer, watching him as he poured his feelings out with every note he sang.

A smirk etched on his lips and he quickly scribbled something on his notebook, shaking his head slightly.

_You’re singing this for someone aren’t you? How cliché…_

 

* * *

 

 

Yaku decided that it would be better for his own sake if this time he just waited for Lev outside the building. Now that the contest was over, the crowd seemed to be even more excited, pushing and tugging and making a hell out of noise. He understood the excitement, in fact he too had to admit that he was feeling pretty excited, after all it’s not everyday that your significant other sings a song he wrote just for you in front of dozens of people.

In that moment he just wanted to see Lev, to wrap his arms around his skinny long torso and just cradle him to sleep. Though he never said it out loud, he didn’t have high hopes about Tolstoi actually making it in the contest, so the results weren’t a surprise. They had ended up in 4th place, which was not a bad thing for first timers but still he could only guess how bad they probably felt. Besides, they had the recording of their new album in line, winning the competition would mean that there would be high chances of them having a decent future in the music industry. And knowing Haiba Lev, Yaku had the feeling that he would probably spend the whole night comforting and wiping his face until he finally fell asleep.

“You sure you don’t want me to wait here with you?” His friend suddenly asked, pushing himself away from the brick wall. “Kuroo’s probably somewhere else already so… I don’t mind waiting.”

Yaku smiled softly, checking his phone’s screen one last time before he shoved it in his pocket (which was pointless since in 3 seconds he’d probably be picking it up again). “Don’t worry, Lev will be out in a bit so.”

“Hm okay then.” Kenma huffed slightly, making the annoying strand of hair that was right in the middle of his face fly away for a bit. “Talk to you tomorrow then?”

“Mhm, get home safely.” He waved his hand slightly as he watched his friend walking away towards a taxi, his attention immediately turning to the backstage door when he hears girls screaming. Unfortunately, though he could barely see, it was just some blond guy coming out. His attention quickly went to his phone just to check if there were any new messages from Lev, but of course there weren’t any.

God only knows how long he was waiting there for him. Eventually the crowd that had been gathering around the back door became smaller and smaller, until there were only a couple of girls standing there. Lev’s silence was scary, he just didn’t know what to expect from it. Maybe he had just forgotten about checking his phone after the concert, or maybe he was locked up in some bathroom stall crying his eyes out. Yaku looked at the door thinking that maybe it wouldn’t be that much of a bad idea to sneak in and look for his boyfriend, though he was sure that he would get caught by a very tired guard.

“Yaku!” His eyes shot open when he heard that familiar voice suddenly calling his name and he immediately paid attention to check if it was raspy from crying, if it sounded upset instead of the usual upbeat. But his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a tight, almost strangling in fact, hug and completely taken over by worry, he wrapped his arms around the boy’s frame and squeezed him.

“Oh Lev I’m so sorry… I really am, maybe next time you guys can make it.” He spoke, his words a bit muffled since he had half of his face being pressed against his boyfriend’s chest. “You didn’t get too upset did you?”

“Uh? Baby oh my god you worry too much.” Lev’s tone was surprisingly happy and Yaku just sighed in relief, staring up at him. Maybe he was more mature than he thought, he could take over a defeat and accept it without throwing a tantrum. Yaku for a minute wondered if he wasn’t starting to be too motherly too his own boyfriend, something that he would definitely think about later when Lev wasn’t awake.

“Ah I’m so proud of you.” He said with a happy smile, cupping Lev’s cheeks in a rather violent manner, since he still wasn’t all that good at using soft touches with him. “You guys did so well today, the judges were idiots for not picking you.”

Lev let out a small little giggle, “Did you really like it?”

“Of course I did! I still can’t believe you sang that… song in front of everyone though. I wanted to shove my head in the sand.” He puffed his cheeks and pretended to be upset for a bit, though deep inside he was bubbling in happiness. “I’m sure you’ll get other record opportunities though.”

“Well… we actually did.” As he heard that Yaku had to pull back from the hug and stare at Lev in disbelief. He didn’t say anything, however, he just waited for him to continue. “Oikawa met with us after the performance and told us not to mind what the other judges said, that they were just horny old men who wanted pretty faces rather than talent. And he sort of uh told us that he’ll take us in his label and that we could start recording our album next week! Isn’t that like the coolest fucking thing ever?!”

“N-next week?!” Yaku nearly shouted.

“Yeah! We’ll sign the contract tomorrow!” Lev laughed again, that sweet voice filling up Yaku’s ears and making him smile just by hearing it.

“I’m so happy for you.”

He hugged his boyfriend one more time. He didn’t care if they were in the middle of the street, he didn’t care if his bandmates were staring, he was proud for his lover and he wanted him to be sure of that. Never had he hugged someone for as long as he did with Lev, but finally he could say that he was happy.

More than happy actually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dorogoy - dear/sweetheart (or at least that's what google says)
> 
> originally this was only going to have 3 chapters but since i got a bit carried away with this one i decided to split it in two to make it easier to read. 
> 
> i'm sorry i'm so slow updating this fic T_T but i promise that the last chapter will be posted soon!!


	4. Chapter 4

There was something so relaxing about feeling him breathe. To have his hand resting on his soft pale skin and watch as it moved up and down slowly. Everything about him was just so beautiful, from the pasty white tone of his skin, the way it shivered when he brushed his fingers against it. Yaku closed his eyes and leaned his face against his boyfriend’s light hair, inhaling his scent for a bit before kissing his head. The small noise that escaped his lips was beyond adorable and he tightened his grip around him, pressing his chest against his bare back.

“Tomorrow we’re gonna record the last song of the album.” Lev said with a yawn, moving one of his hands to mindlessly play with Yaku’s fingers. “Iwaizumi said that we’ll hold a few gigs here and then depending on the sales we might go on tour.”

“Hmm that’s great Lev.” Yaku mumbled against his hair before pressing yet another kiss.

“Yeah and he said that he might book us this really famous venue here in Tokyo as our first concert, I’m so excited.” He felt his boyfriend’s body shaking a little as he said that and even if he couldn’t see it, he was sure Lev was smiling at that moment.

“I’m so happy for you.” He said in the same calm tone, his fingers now tangled on Lev’s long ones. As he looked at the back of his head Yaku remembered how Lev had been staying over for almost a week, how it was nice to see him home after he came back from work. They hadn’t been together for long, but Yaku knew the conditions under Lev lived and he knew that a boy his size and age would probably be more than thrilled to move out from a place he had to share with 4 other people. Besides, specially know that he was going to start doing concerts again, it would be really nice to be able of being with Lev frequently, even if it was just a little bit before they fell asleep. With that thought, Yaku took a deep breath. “Hey… don’t you think it would be nice to like uh live together and stuff?”

He could feel Lev suddenly stop breathing and he gently pulled his hand away.

Lev turned around to face his boyfriend, large green eyes widened even more than usual.

 _Oh_.

“Do you… are you really asking me to move in?”

Yaku gulped and brought one of his hands to the back of his own head. “I mean… yeah. I know the apartment you live in is too small for all of you and I have enough space for two people here so. You don’t have to if you think we’re moving to fast or something.”

“Psht you kidding me right?” And in a matter of seconds he felt his face being pushed against Lev’s warm and bare chest, his long arms wrapped tightly around Yaku’s head. “Why in the hell would I refuse that offer hm? I mean I’d have homemade food instead of instant ramen, clean clothes, _steamy hot sex every night…_ ”

That last part was said in such a sleazy way that Yaku just had to gently lay a slap on one of Lev’s arms followed by a very angry: “Don’t make me regret offering this to you.”

“Aw baby!”

To make up for his own silliness Lev decided to press a kiss against his boyfriend’s lips and for as much as he wanted to dislike it, Yaku just found himself melting against those lips. Their bodies became closer with the kiss, Yaku’s hands quickly moving to their usual spot behind Lev’s neck.  

And like that, Haiba Lev became an official resident of Yaku Morisuke’s humble home.

 

* * *

  

He was not the type of person that enjoyed or was addicted to smoking, but he would always keep a package of cigarettes nearby for when the situation called for it. As he listened to the not-so-silent noises of the city at night, he blew a cloud of smoke out of the window and thought about how he should hurry and finish his cigarette before his guest got upset.

“I can see you didn’t get rid of that habit yet.” His guest suddenly said, and by the noises he was making he had the feeling that he was putting his clothes back on.

“Well you know…” He tossed the cigarette out the window despite having the ashtray right beside him, turning around to look at the short haired male that was focused on buttoning his shirt on the bed. “Old habits die hard.”

The brown-haired man snorted and put the last button of his shirt in its case. “Especially if your name is Kuroo Tetsurou.”

He snickered quietly and walked closer to the bed, carefully fixing the other’s collar. “What can I say, I’m a creature of habit.”

“Of terrible habits, you mean.” The man said disapprovingly, yet with a small smile placed on his lips.

“Look who’s talking.” Kuroo replied with a smirk but immediately regretting it, he bit his bottom lip harshly and sighed. “Sorry Daichi, I didn’t m-“

“Don’t worry about it. I should probably get going.” He watched as the other man walked closer to the hotel room’s door and put on his shoes, not being able of saying anything to fix the situation instead of…

“How’s Yui?”

He saw how Daichi stiffened as soon as her name was mentioned and he clenched his jaw. He couldn’t help not asking about his her, after all he had known both of them for years now. It was moments like this that made him wonder if he was a bad person.

“She’s… fine.” The man replied monotonously, his gaze focused on the floor. “She’s home. Thinking I’m at an emergency meeting with sponsors.”

“Hm I would tell you to send her my love but—“ That was when he saw it, the glare that he dreaded to receive. He didn’t mind getting glared at by Kenma or Yaku, or anyone really, but when Daichi did it, it always felt like he had something piercing his heart. The confidence in his posture changed almost instantly and he crossed his arms over his chest, eyes too scared to look right into Daichi’s. “Look, I know I’m the affair and that I’m not supposed to butt in but… you can’t live your life like this. Daichi, you’re in pain.” He dared to move closer to him, his face showing how worried he truly felt. “You need to tell her.”

“Tell her what Tetsurou, huh?” The tone of his voice changed and Kuroo stepped back. “Tell her ‘Oh by the way Yui, remember Kuroo from college? Yeah we meet up twice a month and fuck, pretty cool uh?’ Just… what do you think would happen? I would get a divorce and live with you in your fancy penthouse and hotel rooms?” Daichi moved to get his suit jacket from a nearby chair and huffed. “Keep you company while you fuck your little high-class friends?”

“I’m sorry, I’m just saying—“

“Whatever Kuroo I’m too tired for this.” He brought a hand to his own face and rubbed it, letting out a sigh as he spoke. “I’ll talk to you later, ‘kay?”

Tetsurou nodded and leaned against one of the walls, watching Daichi leave without saying anything else besides a quiet “Bye.” No matter how hard he tried, their nights would never end on a good note, he would always manage to ruin them by going too far.

Almost as if it had been previously rehearsed, as soon as the hotel room’s door closed Kuroo’s phone rang. The young man sighed and quickly answered the call, not even checking who it was. “Yeah?”

“ _Kuroooooo~ are you ignoring me? Didn’t you read my texts? Waaah how cold…”_ He immediately recognized the voice and almost as if it was automatic, a smirk appeared on his lips.

“I’m sorry Tooru, I was busy. What is it?” He picked up his pants, balancing his phone between his shoulder and his cheek.

“ _Well I sent you like 10 texts asking if you wanted to come over but never mind about that now hmph._ ” By the way he was speaking, sounding so childish, Kuroo knew that he wasn’t actually upset. “ _Anyway I wanted to ask you if you still wanna continue with your plan or if you had any new ideas._ _We’re almost done with the first part so… are we still doing this?_ ”

“Uh? Oh uh yeah, yeah we are.” Kuroo rubbed his forehead after he finished buttoning up his pants.

“ _Hmm good… In the morning I’ll tell Iwa-chan to proceed. But I miss you Tetsurou, I was hoping we could repeat what we did on New Year’s Eve one of these days. Or do you not like me anymore?_ ”

He tried his best to sigh as quietly as he could, reaching out to get his shirt and carefully putting it on. “Tooru you know that’s not true. I love you.”

“ _You say that every time we talk but you never come over. Never mind I don’t wanna talk to you right now, I’m brokenhearted. I’ll call you tomorrow. Maybe._ ”

And like that he turned off the call, leaving Kuroo even more restless than he was before.

 

* * *

 

Usually around 7am his phone’s alarm would ring, he would drag himself out of bed, head to the bathroom to wash his face and then go to the kitchen to have his cup of coffee.

But now, even more than when he was staying officially, with Lev sleeping right beside him every night his routine would be a little different.

His alarm would ring, he would groan, Lev would groan and wrap his arm tighter around him, Yaku would groan a little louder in protest and Lev would shut him up by pressing a lazy kiss against his lips.

Sometimes he would get up right after, other times he would stay a little while. But the important part was that for the first time in his life he was looking forward for his mornings. He would be looking forward for Lev’s arm tightening around him, for his kisses, for his company in the kitchen while he drank his coffee. He didn’t need to wake up as early as his boyfriend did, yet he would do it every single day.

It was such a precious sight to see. Lev’s sleepy face as he drank his coffee, his lazy attempts of making conversation, everything just added up to the cuteness of Haiba Lev.

After he finished his mug, Yaku yawned and turned to his boyfriend. “So… what are your plans for today?”

“Hmm we’re having a meeting with Mister Oikawa and then we’ll have a concert later.” He placed his mug down on the table, leaning slightly closer to his boyfriend with a sleepy smile on his face. “What about you? Work, work and work?”

Yaku snorted and got up from the table so he could put his mug in the sink, soon feeling his boyfriend wrapping his arms around him. “Yes, work as usual. Can I count you for dinner tonight?”

The taller had his face pressed against the top of Yaku’s head and mumbled something incomprehensible in response.

“I’ll take that as a ‘I’d love to but I’m busy’” He chuckled before moving away from his boyfriend’s embrace, looking at his lanky abandoned figure that looked a lot like a child that was about to cry. “I gotta go to work now, you know I hate getting late.”

While he listened to his boyfriend whine Yaku went back to the bedroom to put on his clothes. Even when he was brushing his teeth in the bathroom and checking his hair (since combing it would be pointless) Lev still hadn’t been done with his whining, which at that point were mostly incomprehensible noises rather that proper words. Soon enough Yaku was putting on his shoes in the entrance hall, balancing his back over his bent back so it wouldn’t bother him, and still Lev was complaining about how Yaku worked too much and how he should go on vacation.

“Hmm I’m gonna go now okay?” He suddenly announced, staring at the taller with a small smirk.

“Uh?! Wait you’re not going without your goodbye kiss.” In his typical clumsy manner, Lev quickly walked towards him and gave him a big, noisy kiss that left Yaku chuckling. “See you later, babe?”

“God are we really doing the pet-names thing now?” Pretending to be displeased, Yaku wiped his lips on the back of his hand and walked closer to the door.

“Don’t tell me you don’t like hearing me call you babe, _cutie_.” He could hear Lev following him towards the door, and he kept his eyes on him. The childish grin on his lips too big for him not to notice. “Honey? Sweetheart? Sugar?”

He sighed and shook his head, placing his hand on the doorknob. “I’m gonna barf, Lev.”

“Sweet pie? Baby boo?” With each pet-name Lev would step closer to Yaku, his tall figure looming over him. “Sugar tits? Honey bun? Da-“

Yaku immediately placed his index finger against his boyfriend’s lips, staring at him with squinted eyes. “Don’t you even dare.”

“Just kidding Mori, don’t worry.” He didn’t move away from him however, he just took Yaku’s small hand in his and pulled him into another kiss. “Text me when you get there okay?”

“Okay okay.” Yaku finally turned the doorknob and stepped out of the apartment, turning his head just to take one last look of his cute 190cm boyfriend in disheveled pyjamas. “See you.”

Lev beamed a wide smile and waved his hand at him before the door closed, and with a smile that was begging to be wider, Yaku walked to work.

 

[ new message ] I love you ♥

 

* * *

  

He had a high tolerance for a lot of things, but heat was not one of them. Maybe it was because of his russian blood, hot weather just didn’t seem to go well with him at all. Worse than that were hot, stuffy backstage rooms in small and crowded clubs that made the temperature rise even more. At that point, Lev wasn’t just sweating, it was like his whole body had decided to become one with air and was now evaporating. Even his vision was blurry with how hot he felt and if it wasn’t for Hinata carefully wiping his forehead with a damp towel he thought he would almost become unconscious.

“Thank you…” He said breathlessly to the red-haired roadie.

“No problem, just trying to be useful.” Hinata replied with a half-hearted smile, taking Lev’s acoustic guitar with his free hand before guiding him further into the backstage room. Everyone around them was complaining about the heat, his bandmates swearing loudly as they got rid of as much clothing as they could, shocking the few girls that were working back there.

When Lev finally saw a chair in his peripheral vision he gathered all his remaining energy and used the power of his long legs to get there as fast as possible, sinking on the plastic seat in such a dramatic way that it almost seemed like he was paying homage to that one scene from Howl’s Moving Castle of the Witch of the Waste. He used his large hands to serve as fans as he waited for further commands, watching as Nishinoya poured a whole bottle of water over his tiny body and made a gigantic puddle around his feet. Hinata practically fainted when he saw that, grabbing a handful of paper towels and quickly wiping the water from the floor.

“Good show tonight guys.” A familiar voice was suddenly heard and everyone turned their attention to the suited guy that was approaching them. Hinata, on the other hand, kept his full attention on his task, lips bitterly pursed together.

“Iwaizumi! Next time tell them to install a fucking AC in here, we’re cooking up in here!” Tanaka shouted angrily, though that only made the manager laugh.

“Don’t worry, you guys won’t have to worry about that for a while.” Iwaizumi said, grabbing his phone from his pocket so he could check an incoming message.

Everyone stared at each other in question with what he said, but the only one who had the guts to ask was Lev. “What do you mean? They didn’t like our show?”

“Oh no no, they loved it don’t worry.” There was a mysterious smile on the brown haired male’s face as he shoved his phone back in his suit pants’ pocket. “I have big news for you.”

No one said anything this time, everyone just too anxious about whatever was going to come out of that man’s mouth. Iwaizumi looked at everyone with wide eyes before laughing again, then taking one of the water bottles that were standing on the table and hadn’t been opened yet and took a large swig. “You guys are going on a world tour this fall.”

A series of very loud and shocked WHAT?!’s came out of everyone in the room, not believing what they were hearing.

“I talked to Oikawa earlier today and he told me that this visual-kei band is going on a world tour this fall and that they’re gonna need an opening act. So he decided to sign you guys up and since they liked your stuff… Oh and we managed to get this famous record company in the US to agree with producing your next album, so there’s also that.”

Lev watched as everyone frantically asked random things to the manager, the smile on his cheeks so wide that they were starting to hurt. His first urge was to pick up his phone from his pocket and immediately send a text to Yaku.

 

[ text ] SOMETHING REALLY AMAZING JUST HAPPENED I CAN’T WAI

 

Then he realized something and stopped typing. Suddenly raising his head from the screen to look at the manager he asked loudly, “How long will that be, more or less?”

“Uh about a year or so? Maybe more? Why do you ask?” Iwaizumi shot up one of his eyebrows and stared at the light haired male, who was now looking at his phone’s screen with a puzzling expression. He read and reread his unsent text, thumb hovering over the delete button as he tried to figure out what to do.

Even when he was coming out of the club he was still staring at that text, almost as if his brain had frozen in that instant. His bandmates were all staring at him confused but none really knew what to say to him, just watch in a safe distance as their singer stared at the screen blankly.

His phone suddenly buzzed in his hands and he almost dropped it on the ground.

His boyfriend’s name blinked on the screen and he stared at it completely frozen.

He had no idea why he felt so terrified but for some reason his heart was racing.

After a while he finally answered the call. “H-hey babe.”

“ _Hello, hot russian version of Mick Jagger, how was the show tonight? Did you get any hot groupies hit on you because I’m not there?_ ” It was just Yaku. Yaku and his lovely excited voice, why was he feeling so anxious?

“Aha well…” He let out a short and rather forceful chuckle. “The show was all right yeah.”

“ _Okay I promise I won’t make lame jokes like that ever again._ ” He felt bad for not giving an honest laugh to Yaku’s little joke, in fact he felt like shit for it. “ _Are you heading home now?_ ”

“Y-yeah I’m about to. Are you uhm… are you home?” Lev glanced at his bandmates, that were all gathered around their manager having a chat.

“ _Yeah I told you I’d go straight home after work. Why? Are you worried I might have gone out without telling you? Oh by the way, I didn’t know if you were hungry but I left you some food for dinner._ ”

Lev took a deep breath. He was being silly for feeling so anxious, Yaku would surely love hearing the good news, he’d just had to tell him.

“Thanks. Uh… so see you in a bit?”

“ _You sound weird, are you okay?”_ Lev took a deep breath. Maybe it would just be better to tell him personally, that way he would be able of seeing the face he would make when he found out.

“Yeah don’t worry babe, I’ll be home soon.” He forced himself to speak in his normal cheerful tone, but knowing well that he wasn’t that good of an actor to make it convincing.

“ _Okay… see you_.” Yaku was the one to turn off the call which made him feel both relieved and worried. Knowing his boyfriend, he had probably already figured out that something was going on with him and by the time he would get home they would most certainly fight about it.

“Yo Lev!” All of the sudden Tanaka yelled, making him turn his head back to his bandmates. “Let’s go, it’s getting late.”

He stared at the unfinished text that was now glowing on the screen of his phone and repeated in his mind how it shouldn’t be that hard to tell Yaku about the good news. What exactly would be the problem? Not being able of seeing his boyfriend for a while? He knew Yaku was faithful enough to wait for him and not cheat on him while he was gone, so was the problem really just him? Would he be able of being faithful to Yaku? Of course, cheating on him was totally out of question.

Before he headed to the van, he deleted the unsent message, preparing in his mind what he would say to make the announcement to Yaku.

It couldn’t be that hard.

He repeated that speech in his head as if it was a broken record, just so that as soon as he got home he would be able of telling Yaku as calmly and naturally what was going on.

But as soon as he arrived it was like his mind had gone blank. He stared at their front door for a good while, mumbling to himself that he was making too much of a big deal about it. After a few good five minutes, he finally managed to place his key in the lock and opening the door, the first thing he saw when he looked inside the neatly aligned shoes that he had left on a messy pile before he left for the concert. His pounding heart calmed down just by seeing that, reminding himself that Yaku was the kind of person that would do those little things for Lev every once in a while, never asking for anything in return.

After taking off his shoes, placing them perfectly aligned with the rest, he silently stepped inside the apartment, looking around for Yaku. As he stepped into their living room, he found Yaku’s sleeping figure sprawled on the couch. He still had his glasses on, a very old and used version of The Hobbit resting over his stomach while he snored rather quietly. It was in that moment that all the nervousness that he was feeling vanished, just seeing his boyfriend sleeping in such a cute way after probably been waiting for Lev to come home.

He snickered quietly and placed his guitar down, resting it against the couch before he stepped to the front and very carefully removed his glasses from his face and placed the book on the coffee table. He then picked Morisuke up princess-style, despite knowing that he hated being held like that, or in any way really, and walked as slowly as he could do their bedroom, not wanting to disturb his sleep. But little did he know that for as careful as he could be, and with his light sleep, Yaku had opened his eyes and was observing him while being carried.

“I’ll forgive you for carrying me like this this time.” Lev nearly dropped him from the scare of suddenly hearing his low sleepy voice talking to him, his green eyes wide opened as he looked at him. “Don’t look at me like that, anyone would wake up if they were suddenly picked up.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up.” Lev said with a soft chuckle, the sleepy look on his boyfriend’s face being too cute to be taken seriously.

“Hm it’s okay.” Yaku closed his eyes again, making Lev think that maybe he didn’t mind that much being carried like that. Once they finally got to the bedroom he placed him with much care on his side of the bed, keeping his eyes on his face as Yaku stared back at him. “Are you okay? You sounded weird on the phone?”

Lev took a deep breath and placed a soft kiss on Yaku’s forehead, thinking that by the way that he was so sleepy it would be a better idea to just tell him in the morning. He stepped away from the bed and removed his shirt, tossing it to his pile of clothes on top of a chair. “Yeah it was just the heat. The AC was broken so the air was really stuffy in the venue and yeah, you know how I get when it’s too hot.” Well he was telling the truth, wasn’t he? He didn’t need to feel anxious about it, though his heart was back to pound furiously as it did earlier.

“Really? Fuck it must have been terrible.” Yaku couldn’t contain his yawn, doing halfway through the sentence. “Do you feel better now?”

He slipped on the sleeveless shirt that he would usually wear to sleep and turned his head back to his boyfriend. “Yeah don’t worry baby.”

“Hm…” Yaku kicked the covers to the end of the bed, feeling too hot to even have them near him. “Sorry for falling asleep, I wanted to wait for you but I just blacked out on the couch.”

This time Lev chuckled, removing his tight black jeans while trying to keep himself balanced. “It’s okay, had a long day at work?”

“Yeah…” Yaku yawned yet again. “Had to read a couple of manuscripts again and then help Kenma carrying a bunch of heavy boxes to the basement. It was a pretty long day.”

“Oh my poor baby.” Lev spoke in an annoyingly cute tone that usually made Yaku feel rather annoyed, but this time he must have been so sleepy that he didn’t even say anything about it besides:

“Shut up and come here. I wanna cuddle you.”

That didn’t leave him much choice other than to give in and lay beside his boyfriend, which wasn’t really a sacrifice for him in all honesty. He was glad for after that stressful and long day he would be able of sleeping all cuddled up to his sweetheart. And as soon as he leaned his back against the mattress he felt Yaku’s slender arms moving to his chest, an action that demanded for Lev’s arms to wrap around him.

“You smell like sweat... and cigarettes.” Yaku suddenly grumbled, his left cheek completely smushed against the taller’s chest.

“I should probably go take a shower.” As soon as he suggested that, he felt Yaku tossing his arm across his chest and giving him a tight squeeze. He glanced at his boyfriend with a slightly stunned expression that soon turned into an endearing smile when he saw how firmly Yaku was holding onto him.

“Don’t.” The smaller male mumbled and nuzzled more against Lev’s shoulder. “Just for tonight. The first thing you’re gonna do tomorrow is taking a shower though.”

He couldn’t contain his laughter this time, pressing a gentle kiss on the top of Yaku’s hazel hair. “Okay okay… I’ll shower tomorrow.”

In that moment, under the warm dim light of the lamp on one of the nightstands, Lev took the liberty to observe Yaku’s face attentively. He had already closed his eyes and his pinkish lips were parted ever so slightly, slow, warm breaths escaping them in a soothing rhythm. He knew from the day he first saw him that there was an interesting kind of beauty to Yaku’s nerdy features, from the thick framed glasses that he wore in front of his eyes to his soft hazel hair that was now becoming longer. Even his out of style clothes had a certain cute appeal to them, being part of the beautiful combo that was Yaku Morisuke.

There were times when he didn’t consider himself worthy enough of being the one who would see him in such a vulnerable way. From what he had learned, not even in his previous relationships Yaku had been able of giving himself as easily as he did with him. His past girlfriends had accused him of being distant, uninterested, a workaholic… all of which, in a way at least, Yaku still was. Though Lev was too modest to admit it, if it wasn’t for his childish stubbornness the two wouldn’t probably even be close to being together. Deep in his heart, Yaku had all the tools necessary to be a passionate lover, they just needed to be dug out from that snarky attitude of his, and the best way to do it was to be overly touchy or lovey-dovey. He hated it, or at least he made it seem like he did, but after a while he would actually welcome Lev’s touchiness and cute pet names.

Yaku was everything to him. He was the only one who made his heart pound even with just a simple sleepy nod in acknowledgment while he had his breakfast in the kitchen, even with a very flustered ‘shut the fuck up’ whenever Lev would say cheesy things to him. No one else in the world had ever made him feel that way, in fact nothing else in the world did. Music was the only thing that could come close to it, but at the end of the day what really gave the strength for him to wake up every morning and keep going was his boyfriend.

He turned off the light and once again kissed the top of his hair, making sure that every single movement he made wouldn’t disturb his sleep.

“Goodnight Yaku.”

 

* * *

 

“…Tell me again why exactly this is the end of the world?” Kenma didn’t even raise his eyes from the mug filled with tea he was holding, simply knowing that his friend would tell him what was going on without him insisting much.

Yaku just sighed, lighting what was his third cigarette in the space of an hour and leaning closer to the window. “Have you ever met my mother? Oh yes, you have. So you should know why this is the end of the world, Kenma.”

The other man just snorted, blowing on his hot tea before speaking again. “So your mother invited you to her place to have dinner, what’s the problem?”

“She wants to meet Lev. That’s the problem.” The tone of his voice was rather rude but he knew that Kenma wouldn’t be offended. After all, knowing Mrs. Yaku (actually Mrs. Kimura since 2011) the whole ordeal seemed rather scary, not only because she had been pressuring Yaku into finding a special someone but because, given his situation, no one could really tell if she’d accept it or not.

After taking a sip of his tea Kenma turned his head to his friend and sighed. “How did she find out about him?”

“That’s the most unnerving thing you know? I never told her about him.” Yaku pressed his cigarette against the ashtray and turned around to face Kenma. “She just… found out somehow. Last night I asked her for some recipes that she used to make when I was a kid and you know what she said?” He waited for Kenma to shake his heat before he changed the tone of his voice, doing a very accurate impression of his mother. “’Ah Morisuke, when are you going to let me meet her?’ And I asked her what she was talking about and she said ‘oh you know your girlfriend~ you’ve been so happy lately, you must have someone in your life!’ and one thing lead to the other and now we’re going to her place for dinner.”

“Wow…” The other male snickered and placed his mug on the desk. “Your mother knows you so well, that’s impressive.”

Yaku took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes for a while, grumbling something inaudibly. “Impressive or not, she thinks I have a girlfriend. A _girlfriend_ , Kenma. How do you think she will react when she sees me walking in with a giant emo guy? This is just… terrible. I wanna die.”

“Then don’t go. Tell your mother you can’t make it.” He knew that whatever he might would suggest it just wouldn’t be good enough for Yaku Morisuke, not when he was feeling like ‘dying’. Besides, it wouldn’t be hard to believe that deep inside Yaku wanted to introduce his boyfriend to his mother, after all they had been together for a month now… well that wasn’t exactly that much time but still, he understood why Yaku, who had been single for years now, would like his mother to meet the person he’s in love with.

But of course he wasn’t going to give that away easily.

“You know I can’t do that. She won’t forgive me.” The smaller walked closer to his friend and leaned against the desk, almost bumping against the tea mug with his behind and nearly causing a big disaster. Thankfully enough, as soon as he saw that his friend was about to do that, he saved the tea just in time.

“Does Lev know?”

“Yeah I… I told him right after the call. He’s pretty excited about it.” Yaku sighed loudly. “But I don’t know if that’s a relief or not.”

“Then I’m sure things will be fine. It’s not like your mother is a conservative person, I mean she remarried at 45 after getting pregnant from her boyfriend. I don’t think she’ll judge you for dating Lev.” Kenma mumbled, sipping on his drink once again.

“Fuck I forgot that I have to buy something for the kid.” Yaku suddenly moved away from the desk and looked around for his bag, quickly packing his things. “Can you tell Kuroo I’m leaving earlier today?”

“Sure.” The other man blinked blankly at him and just watched as Yaku ran out of his office’s door, not sure even if he had heard him.

As soon as he stepped into the elevator, the first thing Yaku did was to text Lev explaining how he was getting off work earlier and that he was going to buy some gifts for his mother’s family, as well as orders for him to take a shower and put on nice clothes. He didn’t have much time, so he had to buy all the things he needed in less than an hour if he still wanted to get home in time to shower.

When the elevator’s door slid open, Yaku ran out to the street.

 

* * *

  

By the way the text was written, Lev understood that Yaku was probably going through a lot of stress. It was all a bunch of orders, with no periods or commas, simply the kind of message that if he had gotten from anyone else he would most certainly get annoyed. But it came from Yaku and after he talked with his mother the night before he hadn’t exactly been able of relaxing, so he understood.

All that he could do was to follow his orders, and that’s what he did. He took a shower, he put on the nicest shirt and the nicest pair of pants he had (the ones that had no holes in them). He even went as far as combing his hair, parting it properly on the side in a way that made him look like a nerd. Not the kind of nerd that Yaku was, because he was adorable, but the tall, awkward, geeky one that struggled to be social with other people. He laughed at his own reflection, deciding not to change it just to surprise his boyfriend.

As he came out of the bathroom he all of the sudden heard the front door being opened, then a very tired and nervous Yaku complaining with how unpractical his shoes were for not coming off easily. He approached the smaller man cautiously, trying his best to keep the smile on his face as discreet as possible. “Hey babe, need help?”

“Ugh if you could take a shower for me that’d be great.” Yaku tossed his bag to the couch and quickly handed the paper bag he was holding to his boyfriend. “Would you mind putting these in the car? I’m just gonna take a shower and then we’re good to go.” Lev tried his best to keep his seriousness while Yaku removed his own clothes in a rather violent manner, watching him from a certain distance as he stormed into the bathroom.

“S-sure baby… I’ll wait in the car.” He covered his lips with his free hand and headed to the entrance. Even when he was a complete nervous wreck Yaku had a certain cuteness to him that just made Lev feel like smiling like an idiot, which was, of course, something that if he wanted to keep his body intact he should never mention to him.

As he was heading to the car he peeked into the bag, only to find a bottle of red wine and a medium sized box that seemed to be wrapped in wrapping paper. He immediately joined the dots, figuring that the gift was more likely to be a present for Yaku’s half-sister and the wine for his mother and stepfather, and just by thinking about them he felt his heart beating faster. Truth being told, he was nervous about meeting Yaku’s family, not only because, from what Yaku had told him, they thought that Lev was a girl but also because families just made him feel uneasy. Most of all, he feared Yaku’s family rejecting him because of him, he wouldn’t be able of living knowing that he was the one who drew them apart.

But Yaku seemed pretty determined in going to that dinner, despite complaining about his nervousness. When they talked about it Yaku mentioned how his previous girlfriends all managed to dump him one way or the other, whether they had been together for months or years. His mother had been constantly concerned on her son being a workaholic with barely any time to find himself a special someone. Sure, part of it was because she wanted to have grandchildren someday, but for the most part she was simply worried of Morisuke’s happiness.

He just hoped he was good enough to be known as the person who brought happiness back to Yaku.

 

One of the most miraculous things Yaku Morisuke was able of doing was somehow getting ready in less than ten minutes. Maybe it was because, at least comparing with Lev, he had a smaller area to take care of in the shower, or maybe it was just because he was able of doing things at a great speed. The truth was that in less than ten minutes Yaku was opening the car’s door opposite to Lev and stepping inside, managing to scare him somehow.

“Jesus!” Lev said in a breathless voice, holding onto his chest while panting. “I’m starting to think that you’re some kind of demon or something.”

“Yeah yeah, just start driving. We’re already late.” Yaku buckled up the seatbelt and leaned against the seat, shutting his eyes firmly before hitting his forehead. “Fuck…”

“What?” Lev rose his brows when he saw that sudden violent gesture, starting the car and following his phone’s instructions to Yaku’s mother’s house.

“I forgot my glasses in the bathroom. Anyway, did you bring the buy I gave you?” Yaku didn’t even let him reply, his voice turning lower when he spoke again. “… what the fuck is going on with your hair?”

Lev chuckled and turned his head to him for a few brief seconds, keeping his eyes on the road since he had been scolded before for moving them away too often. “Do you like it? I thought I’d look fancier this way.” He immediately felt Yaku’s hands ruffling through his hair to bring it back to its usual mess and a loud laughter escaped his lips. “Aw come on… you really don’t like it?”

“You looked like a creeper Lev.” Though his tone was serious, Lev could tell that there was a smile on Yaku’s face and just for the small pleasure of seeing his cute smile he glanced at him for a few brief seconds. For a bit his nervousness vanished, being completely focused on the beautiful man that was sitting right beside him, only to then return when Yaku spoke again. “Oh there’s a free spot over there.”

He turned his eyes back to the road and drove to said spot, his focus going completely into doing that task before nervousness took over him once again. On the seat beside him he heard Yaku taking off his seatbelt and turning to the backseat so he could reach for the bag they had brought, and he felt the need to remove his as well so he wouldn’t notice he was nervous about the dinner. It was futile, however, since Yaku being the observant person he was immediately took notice of his boyfriend’s change of attitude and was quick enough to make a comment about it. “Hey you okay?”

Lev gulped and ran a hand through his now messy hair. “Yeah I mean… sort of. I’m kinda nervous to be honest.”

“What? But you were so excited to come here.” He avoided looking at Yaku this time, because if he was sporting a disappointed look on his face he sure did not want to take notice of it.

“Y-yeah I was but… I dunno, I guess I’m scared that they won’t like me.” He admitted in a quiet voice, his eyes finally focusing on Yaku when he felt his warm hands cupping his face.

Yaku was looking at him with a mysterious smile, it was cute and tender, yet it had a certain sadness to it. A sadness that showed how nervous he was as well. “I know, I’m scared too but… we’re here already. I don’t know how they’ll react either but even if they don’t approve of us I want them to know.” His thumbs brushed against Lev’s cheeks with such gentleness that he felt like he would melt under his touch. “Let’s at least try okay? If things go wrong I… I’ll do whatever it takes to protect you, even if that means punching my stepfather, traumatizing my stepsister and never seeing my mother again.”

Lev snickered quietly and placed his hand on top of one of Yaku’s. “I hope it doesn’t go _that_ bad.”

“I know, I know.” Yaku chuckled as well, then leaning forward so he could press his forehead against Lev’s. “Let’s go through this together hm?”

“Hm.” Though he knew he probably wouldn’t approve of it, Lev still leaned his face the few inches necessary for their lips to meet. Much to his surprise Yaku replied eagerly to the kiss, pulling away a few seconds after because to have a long kiss right in front of his mother’s house just didn’t feel right for him.

“Okay.” He said with a sigh while pulling away from him. “Let’s go then.”

Lev took a deep breath and stepped out of the car, rubbing his sweaty palms against his jeans in order to reduce the wetness. When he saw Yaku pressing the button of the doorbell he felt like he his heart was about to stop, immediately holding onto his arm so he could feel some sort of comfort.

And though it happened rather quickly, in his head the door opened slowly and ominously like in an horror movie.

 

* * *

 

Yaku wanted to know what to expect when the door opened, but his mind was blank. All he could hear was his heartbeat and Lev’s nervous breaths, that suddenly ceased when the door was opened.

“Hiiii oh—“ His mother’s wide smile vanished in a matter of microseconds as soon as she saw the tall man standing right beside Yaku and holding onto his arm. “ _Oh_ … oh my, come on in sweethearts. I just finished cooking dinner.”

He was relieved to see that a smile was back on his mother’s face, though it wasn’t as big as the one she made when she saw him. Yaku mumbled a quiet ‘come on’ to Lev and stepped into the apartment, taking off his shoes and immediately taking note that his mother wasn’t being the chatterbox that she usually was. Instead she stood there, watching as the two of them got ready to go into the apartment, almost as if she was at loss for words.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Kimura Tomoko. Morisuke’s mother.” She suddenly said while beaming a smile at Lev.

Lev bent nearly ninety degrees after the woman introduced herself and stuttered out. “N-nice to meet you. H-Haiba Lev. I’m Morisuke’s uh…”

“Oh yes yes, I’m so happy to finally meet you.” It was visible how the woman didn’t quite know what to do when she saw such a tall young man bowing like that, but still she kept a smile on her lips. “My my you’re so tall… and your name, are you a foreigner?”

It was hard to understand what came out of Lev’s lips when he tried answering to Yaku’s mother, since it was a series of stuttered noises that vaguely sounded like words, so Morisuke immediately decided to intervene. “He’s russian. On his mother’s side.”

Mrs. Kimura let out a gasp and covered her mouth with one of her hands, wide eyes looking at the tall boy in front of her. “Oh my… no wonder he’s so handsome!”

Seeing how his boyfriend’s mother was so being so nice, Lev finally managed to relax and decided to work some of his charm on her. “It’s always so nice to hear a beautiful lady like you saying those things.”

Yaku covered his mouth and fought the urge to let out a painful groan, what Lev had just said, though cute and all, was still pretty cringe worthy. Thankfully though Lev had finally managed to calm down and by the way that his mother giggled things couldn’t be going better.

While the two of them exchanged compliments, Yaku decided to step into the living room so he could put the bag he was holding down. As soon as he got there, he saw his mother’s boyfriend, no, husband walking into the living room as well. Now things would certainly get awkward. Morisuke pursed his lips together into a smile and looked at the middle-aged man without knowing what to say. Though he had been with his mother for quite a long time, Yaku still couldn’t feel comfortable around him, though he understood that his mother and his father did not love each other any longer, it still felt awkward to all of the sudden have this man in his life that was taking the place of his actual father. Sure, they had a few things in common, but Yaku never felt like the guy had ever accepted him as his stepson (not that he ever accepted him as his stepfather either).

“Hey Morisuke.” The man said with a smile, looking so friendly that Yaku found himself without knowing what to say. “Haven’t seen you in a while, how are you doing?”

“I uh…” Yaku rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged his shoulders. “I’m good, pretty good I guess. How uh… how about you?”

The man chuckled lightly and stepped closer to one of the couches, placing his hands on it and leaning forward just the slightest. For a 50 something year old man Mr. Kimura was surprisingly good looking, so Yaku could understand why his mother had fell for him, he seemed to be one of those cases of people who get better when they age.

He didn’t understand why he was starting to notice that though, immediately looking away before any more weird thoughts came into his mind.

“So… how’s the book business going?” The man asked, tilting his head a little so he could look at Yaku.

“It’s going well.” Though he didn’t enjoy talking about work that much, he still replied to the other as politely as he could, afraid that they would fall into an awkward silence, which happened very often whenever the two were talking. Their conversation was suddenly cut off by the voice of a little girl suddenly yelling for her father, who suddenly shut up when she saw that Yaku was standing there. When he saw the girl hiding behind his stepfather’s legs he remembered how ever since she was a baby she had never really liked him, whenever he held her in his arms she would always start crying, when he tried talking to her she would pout and walk away. Even knowing his lack of talent to speak to children, Yaku still decided to crouch down and put on the friendliest smile he could so he could speak to the little girl. “Hello Yukko, you’re so tall now.”

Instead of replying, the girl hid even more behind her father’s legs, who tried to excuse her actions for her shyness and Yaku rose defeated. Almost instantly his mother came into the room while laughing loudly, turning everyone’s attention to her. Lev followed her in with a wide smile, stepping closer to his boyfriend and placing his hand on his shoulder rather comfortably. Yaku was about to ask something when his mother spoke, clasping her hands together in a loud way.

“So! Let’s eat shall we?”

 

* * *

 

He was no longer surprised with how well the dinner was going. Both his mother and his stepfather talked to Lev at ease, seemingly interested in his music career and never showing any distaste for the fact that they were dating. Yaku didn’t talk much during the whole meal, he felt like there wasn’t anything he could say that would be interesting or that would add anything relevant to the conversation. Sure, his boyfriend was way better at small talk than he would ever be, but he just couldn’t make himself talk comfortably with his mother’s new family. Though she had tried her best to keep Yaku close to her after she got married, he just never felt like he fit in her new family. The main reason was because he was already an adult at that time, after spending most of his life living alone with his mother it just felt odd to all of the sudden pretend like they were a normal family. So it just seemed better for him to keep his distance from them, even if his mother didn’t approve of it.

After they were done eating, Yaku watched his boyfriend and his half-sister playing together with the toy he had bought her while his mother and his stepfather took care of the dirty dishes. There was a strange mix of feelings taking over him, surely there was relief but at the same time he felt a little uneasy, since neither his mother or Mr. Kimura had mentioned anything about the fact that he was dating a man. He had read that usually in those situations people would talk to their parents about how they had always felt like they were different from others, how ever since they were little they had always been interested in people from the same gender, and sometimes their parents would tell them that they always knew that they were like that and accepted them, but others wouldn’t have the same luck. Yaku’s relief came from the fact that his case didn’t seem to fit in that last category, but the uneasiness came because it didn’t fit in the other one either. Maybe the news had hit her mother so badly that she hadn’t been able of giving a response yet, maybe in a few hours he’d receive a very concerned call from her…

His thoughts were interrupted with Yukko screeching loudly while Lev picked her up and spun her around. That slightly preoccupying yet fun sight made Yaku relax a little bit and laugh at the two of them, though being a little bit on edge because they were spinning a bit too close to the TV.

“Careful Lev.” He said, getting up from the couch and stepping closer to them.

“Oops sorry Yukko I guess our plane has to land now.” Lev did his best plane engine impersonation and placed the little girl back on her feet. Though she complained, soon she started yawning and Yaku took that as a sign that maybe they should get going.

“Let’s head back, Lev?” He brushed his hand gently over the end of his boyfriend’s back and smiled, glancing at Yukko that now was settling down on one of the couches. “I’ll go talk to my mother.”

He waited for his boyfriend to reply before he headed to the kitchen, where he heard the noises of plates and pans hitting against each other and water running. But when he got closer to the door he heard something more to that, the voices of his mother and his stepfather talking to each other in an almost whisper that was still loud enough for him to understand what they were saying.

“I just… don’t know what to do. I didn’t expect this to happen Tatsu, I never thought he-“

“I know but don’t you think you should talk to him about it?” His stepfather’s voice sounded calm and strict, while his mother seemed like she was about to breakdown.

“And tell him what? We’re already distant, I don’t want to lose him.” Hearing his mother saying that all of the sudden tugged something in his heart, something that left him rather angry. Maybe she wasn’t accepting of his relationship with Lev after all and much like the way she had forcefully tried to make him a member of her new family, she was trying to make it seem like everything was okay with him being his boyfriend. Though he didn’t want to leave without telling her a piece of his mind, he figured that maybe it wouldn’t be much of a good idea to be confrontational, not with Lev and Yukko in the room next door, so he tried his best to act as normal as he could and stepped into the kitchen as if nothing had happened. His mother turned her head to the door with wide eyes before she too put her best act and beamed a smile at her son. “Mori my dear, do you need anything?”

“No I’m good. Uh Yukko’s falling asleep on the couch so… we’re thinking about going now.” He saw the couple eyeing each other before Mr. Kimura spoke.

“Oh sure, we hope this wasn’t too boring for you.”

“Oh it wasn’t, don’t worry.” The smile on Yaku’s face was visibly fake but he didn’t care if they noticed, following the two of them back to the living room where Lev was getting a new hairdo by a very sleepy six-year-old girl.

The half-russian man rose his head to Yaku when they came in. “Are we going?”

As soon as the word ‘going’ came out of Lev’s mouth, Yukko broke down into a loud sob and yelled how she didn’t want him to go, immediately being picked up by her father in attempt to calm her down. Before his boyfriend got up from his seat, Yaku carefully removed the colourful hairpins from his hair and handed them to his mother.

“Well I hope you two liked coming over, I just wish you could stay longer.” His mother said then, staring at her son with a tender smile.

“Well it’s getting late so…” Yaku sighed and looked at Lev as stood up. “Besides tomorrow’s a work day so.”

“Yes of course.” She just said while walking the two young men to the entrance. “We should do this again sometime hm? Whenever the two of you are free.”

“Hm? Yeah sure…” Morisuke was aware that his tone didn’t sound enthusiastic but he just wanted to get out of that place as quickly as possible.

“Drive safely okay?” This time it was his stepfather who spoke, now holding a sleeping Yukko in his arms.

“Sure don’t worry.” Yaku said before sighing softly. “Thanks for dinner.”

“Oh… no need to honey. Give us a ring when you get home.”

He just nodded and waved at them before leaving the apartment with his boyfriend without saying anything else.

 

* * *

 

Lev didn’t need to ask anything to know that there was something going on with his boyfriend, though he wasn’t certain what had ticked him off. Still he decided to keep the silence undisturbed until they reached the car and he started driving, waiting for Yaku to say something first. However, a few minutes into driving he hadn’t still opened his mouth, so he decided that it was time to improvise.

Doing a rather dangerous turn, Lev changed the course and started heading to nowhere in particular, knowing that by doing that Yaku would finally say something. And he was right.

“Where are we going?”

“I dunno, somewhere. Get some ice cream or just sit in the car and talk.” Lev said with a sigh as he glanced at him. “You look like you need to talk. And don’t even start saying that you don’t need to talk, I can see that you’re upset.”

Yaku glanced at him and snorted, a small smile on his lips. “There’s no point in lying to you about it, you stubborn little shit.”

Lev chuckled lightly and patted one of Yaku’s thighs gently, “You’re lucky you have a boyfriend as stubborn as me.”

“I suppose I am.” He placed his hand on top of Lev’s and pointed ahead with his chin. “Park the car somewhere.”

And obediently, Lev searched for an empty spot so he could park the car, which ended up being in the parking lot of a supermarket a few miles away from the city. The place was almost empty, though the lights in the building were still on, so it was quite a good spot for the two of them to talk privately. Yaku unbuckled his seatbelt and turned to Lev, taking a deep breath before finally starting to talk.

“I’m scared that my mother doesn’t accept me dating you.”

Lev froze midway through removing his seatbelt when he heard what his lover said, one of his brows arching upwards since he wasn’t sure if he had heard right. “Why do you say that?”

“I heard her talking to my stepfather. They were… I dunno, they were saying some really weird things and I’m scared that what happened tonight was just an act.” He slid his finger on the bridge of his nose as he would usually do when he had his glasses on, though he wasn’t wearing them at that moment. “What if they hate it? What if they think I’m disgusting or—“

“Mori trust me, your mother doesn’t think you’re disgusting.” The tone of Lev’s voice was low and serious, the kind that Yaku wasn’t very used to hearing coming from him. “If she did she wouldn’t even let us enter her apartment. They were probably talking about something else.”

“It was so weird though…” Yaku mumbled, looking down at his knees still not fully convinced.

“Trust me on this, I know it when people don’t accept you. And usually they don’t give you dinner.” Lev’s seriousness was disconcerting. The adult tone of his voice brought chills down Yaku’s spine and not exactly for the best reason. For someone who just a few minutes ago seemed to be quite cheery the sudden change of personality was a little odd, and in Yaku’s defense, he was so used to Lev being his hyper and excited self that to have him acting so serious was a bit off putting. Most of all, it worried him. “Hey… are you okay?”

Lev bit the inside of his lip and shifted on his seat, keeping his gaze away from Yaku until the latter came closer to him. He insisted. “Was it something I said? Did it bother you?”

At that the taller took a deep breath and changed his defensive posture, leaning his head back against the seat before he spoke. “I just… I guess I got a bit upset with what you said. Your parents were so nice and friendly tonight just… how could you doubt them like that?” Yaku wanted to correct that Mr. Kimura was not his father, since he had spent these last few years saying it quite often, but he decided not to interrupt Lev yet, watching him intently. “They were just so happy and kind that… god I guess I got a bit jealous.”

“Jealous?” He mumbled as he noticed the corners of Lev’s green eyes becoming wet.

“Yeah. You have no idea what I’d do for my parents to be like them.” There was a short pause then, a pause Lev used to press his wrists against his eyes and to gather his strength to fight his tears. “Ah fuck...”

Hearing that made Yaku remember how Lev had never talked about his family, maybe it was because they very rarely had serious conversations like this one or maybe it was just because both of them evaded the subject. Nevertheless, it was a bit of a surprise to find out that someone like Lev, always so happy and positive, would have problems at home. That was a bit silly of him though, since in most books he had read, when there was a character that seemed to be too happy all the time they were always the ones to carry the heaviest burdens in their hearts.

One thing he was sure though, he hated that Lev had something hurting him that bad.

“It’s okay…” He whispered, slipping his arm across Lev’s broad shoulders and leaning closer to him. “You can cry if you want to.”

Lev leaned in to his touch, but he continued talking. “You know what my father said when he found out? Nothing. He just walked up to me and slapped me in the face.” He felt something warm and wet falling on his sleeve and tightened his grip around his boyfriend, a thumb brushing ever so gently over his clothed shoulder to comfort him. “M-my mom just cried and asked me why I kept trying to hurt her more…”

“Why would she ask you that?”

“I was already doing bad in school. I told them that I didn’t want to go to college and that I wanted to be a musician and they were really disappointed with me.” The youngest sniffed and tilted his head so he could rest it on top of Yaku’s. “On my last day of high school I decided to tell them about being… well… being gay and I guess that was the last straw for them.”

Yaku took a deep breath, and with that he took in the information that he had just been given. It was pretty common for parents not to accept their children’s sexual orientation, especially when they came from conservative families, and though he had too feared of that outcome earlier, it was so weird that that had happened to Lev, he was such a loving and hardworking young man. He had always imagined Lev’s mother being the kind that would always brag about her child, not because of his achievements but because of his good heart, it just felt unfair for someone like him to have such unsupportive parents. Those things always happen to other people, to the ones you read about in online forums or to characters from novels that the author felt like torturing, not to good people in real life. Not to Lev.

“My sister’s the only one who stood by me, but at that time she was studying abroad so I was really left alone.” Lev continued, his voice breaking slightly. “She’s tried talking to them about it but they don’t seem to change. I guess I’m just not good enough, I never was after all.”

“Hey.” That hit something in Yaku’s heart, he couldn’t let Lev talk about himself like that. He moved both his hands to his cheeks and made him look at him, thumbs now wiping the little streams of tears that ran down his eyes. “Don’t say that. Really. Your parents are the ones who are not good enough here, hm? What kind of parent doesn’t love their son unconditionally? A very shitty one for sure.”

For some reason that had Lev suddenly snickering, and Yaku found in that quiet little snicker the strength he needed to continue.

“They’re the ones who are missing out on how amazing their son is. I mean it.” He saw Lev’s cheeks becoming flushed and he forced himself to keep a serious face, the sight was way too adorable. “I know I can’t really understand how it is to not have supportive parents but you have me now… and I just realized how self-centered that sounded…”

The taller laughed, that sound filling Yaku’s ears to bliss. “Oh god Yaku…”

Seeing as how the mood had lightened up, Yaku reached Lev’s hand to hold it and tried to keep his face as serious as he could. “I guess I have no choice now than to be your father. Sorry kid.”

Lev faked a loud gasp, “I knew it! You’re into that after all!”

Yaku couldn’t contain himself when he heard that and just started laughing as well, his hand squeezing his lover’s. “No but now seriously… I’m here for you okay? Even if your parents don’t accept you now it doesn’t mean that they won’t change their minds later right? And even if they don’t you have me here to give you all the love I can, and Noya and everyone.” He cupped Lev’s cheek with his free hand and smiled tenderly. “You’re not alone anymore.”

The other leaned against his touch and sighed, then moving forward so his forehead could rest against Yaku’s. They stood like that for a few seconds, no noises in the car besides the sound of their own heartbeats.

“I’m so lucky to have you.” Lev said in an almost whisper, still not pulling away from Yaku.

“So am I.” Pulling away finally, he carefully made the other bend his neck down so his lips could reach his forehead and he pressed a gentle kiss. “The luckiest guy in the world.”

 

* * *

 

It was certainly an exaggeration for him to say that in the past few weeks he had been living in heaven, but still he liked thinking that, it helped him go through his long hard working days in that small and stuffy office of his.

Summer was close to being over and for some reason that had a certain bittersweet taste. When he was younger he would get that feeling because his vacation would be over, it meant that his time of freedom was coming close to an end. The feeling he had at the moment was not very similar to that one, since he didn’t have any summer vacation that year, but it was a strange nostalgia for the good things that happened in that last month of summer. It was under the boiling hot sun that he had first gone out on a date with Lev, it was in the warm breezy nights that he had gone to his shows and fell in love with him.

Summer brought a lot of changes. Big, radical changes, thankfully of the good kind.

He tapped on his phone to check the time and realized that it was already noon, so he stopped reading the manuscript he was working on and shoved his wallet into his pocket. In the exact same moment he was about to step out of his office, his way was suddenly blocked by a tall figure that was standing right in the middle of his doorway.

“What do you want Kuroo?” He said with a sigh, already having a bad feeling because it had been a while since Kuroo had done something to annoy him.

“Aw… I came all the way here to tell you that I missed you and you greet me like that.” The man said with a prominent pout, making the shorter roll his eyes in annoyance. “I’m hurt.”

“Whatever. Just say what the hell you want.” Yaku took off his glasses and wiped the lenses with the hem of his shirt, hoping that Kuroo wasn’t going to say something ridiculous.

Tetsurou crossed his arms and leaned his shoulder against the doorframe, then sighing rather dramatically. “I was hoping we could grab some lunch. It’s been a while since we hung out. You’re always so busy with Lev.”

For some reason it annoyed him to hear Kuroo saying the name of his boyfriend, it was like something nasty was tainting something pure and beautiful.

“We don’t need to go to a fancy place, I’m up for McDonald’s if you want to.”

“God no, not McDonald’s.” Yaku finally said with a sigh, putting his glasses back on and walking out of his office. “Let’s grab some real food instead.”

“Sure, where do you wanna go then?” The taller followed him into the hallway down to the elevator.

“The convenience store.” As he pressed the button to go down he noticed how quiet the other had gotten, clearly not realizing that he was trying to make a joke. “I’m kidding.”

“Oh… oh! Oh my god Yaku.” Kuroo laughed though it didn’t seem too honest. “I’m not used to you doing that, you got me confused for a moment.”

When they stepped into the elevator Yaku tried to keep his distance from Kuroo, glaring at him. “What do you mean by that? I have a sense of humour too you know.”

In the seconds that followed Yaku witnessed Kuroo trying to save himself from that situation with much amusement. Unlike it would have been months ago, he wasn’t at all mad at him or felt like being as cold as he usually was, instead he just enjoyed himself watching Kuroo as he tried to number all the moments where Yaku had cracked a joke in front of him and that he had laughed.

 

* * *

 

Whether you want to believe it or not, they did end up eating food from the convenience store after all. Just for the sake of messing with Kuroo a little more with his new found power, Yaku decided to tell him that he was serious after all when he said that he wanted to eat there. So, they ended up sitting on a park bench with their bought lunchboxes and their drinks, which was quite a sight to see since Mr. Kuroo Tetsurou was not very used to eating those bought packed lunches.

“I can’t believe you weren’t joking after all.” He grumbled, trying his best not to drop any rice onto his lap.

“Hm what can I say. I was really craving for tasteless food today.” Morisuke finished chewing what he had inside his mouth and took a sip of his water. Kuroo just sighed and quickly shoved several lumps of rice into his own mouth. “Anyway, sorry if you don’t like it.”

“Oh don’t worry, it’s fine.” Kuroo said with his mouth half full, then leaning back against the bench and sighing loudly. “You’ve been so happy lately, that boy’s really softening you up isn’t he?”

He wanted to be offended and snap at him, but Yaku found himself just smiling at the mention of Lev. “I guess he did help me feel less stress.”

“Oooh is that so? Is sex with him amazing?” This time he just had to snap at Kuroo, he had just crossed a line and ruined the moment, as usual. So he shot a glare at him followed by a smack on the shoulder that made the other chuckle. “Sorry, I’m just curious.”

“Pervert.” Yaku mumbled before shoving more food into his mouth, watching the people that passed in front of them.

Silence took over for a few minutes before Kuroo spoke again. “I’m glad you found someone, really. Though I never thought that you’d be into guys…”

“What are you trying to say?” He looked at him from the corner of his eye but continued eating, letting the other speak.

“Nothing really, just that I never thought you’d be into guys, that’s it.” Kuroo gave his shoulders a shrug. “I’m just happy you were finally able of finding someone who really likes you, I don’t think it matters if it’s a guy or a girl to be honest.” He too was one of those people that just felt odd when they talked seriously, just like Lev. It was strange how despite having similar personalities, one of them annoyed the shit out of Yaku while the other made his heart flutter like there was no tomorrow.

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Kuroo again. “He seems to be the perfect guy for you. He’s good looking, easy going, artistically talented… He’s way better than any of your ex-girlfriends. They were so out of your league.”

“… Wow…”

“No no, hear me out.” He moved his back away from the bench again so he could look at Yaku properly. “They were all gorgeous, trust me. I mean that British one… oh man that hot librarian you dated after we graduated, they were all too fucking beautiful. But they just didn’t seem to click with you for some reason, they never really… I dunno, seemed to be as interested in you as you were in them.”

He nibbled on the tip of his chopsticks, thinking about what the other was saying and realizing how right he was. Though they were lovely people, his past girlfriends just didn’t make him feel the way Lev did. It was almost like they were puzzle pieces who kind of fit Yaku with some effort while Lev just slid easily. “I… I guess that’s true.”

“Yeah… Lev’s perfect for you man.” Kuroo patted Yaku’s shoulder in a rather rough manner before snickering. “I mean and that boy’s getting pretty successful, isn’t he? Soon he’s gonna be all famous and shit and you’re gonna be his trophy husband or something.”

“Oh god…” Just the thought of being someone’s ‘trophy’ anything just felt ridiculous to him.

“I’m serious man, the kid’s got real talent and I’m sure they’re only gonna get more famous from now on. I mean aren’t they going on a US tour next month?”

 _A US tour?_ Yaku tried his best to remember if Lev had told him anything about that, but nothing came up. Kuroo had to be mistaken. “What?”

“Yeah they might even get a record deal there as well… man things are really working out for them.” Kuroo took a while to notice the concerned look on Yaku’s face, only then realizing that maybe something wasn’t quite right. “… you didn’t know about this?”

Yaku got up from the bench and angrily tossed his lunchbox into the nearest trashcan, rubbing his face. “No.”

“Oh… Lev must have forgotten to tell you th-“

“You think?” His tone got louder with the anger that started pooling up in his chest. He knew Lev would never forget about telling him something as big as that, specially not when he’s the type of person that even sends him texts telling him random things that happened during the day. It hurt him to know that Kuroo had known about that tour before him, that Lev had felt the need to hide that from him. Why did he do that? It just made no sense.

“H-hey uh…” The dark haired male slowly stood up from the bench and got closer to his friend.

“Since when do you know?” He just mumbled, not even turning his face to him.

In a very calm and deep voice Kuroo mumbled as well. “For a while I guess.” Then just watched as Yaku walked away from him, his heart squeezing in itself because of what the mess that he had made.

And the worst part was that he could do nothing other than wait.

 

* * *

 

Lev was more than thrilled to go home earlier that day. His rehearsal had finished right after lunchtime since Iwaizumi was going to a meeting afterwards, and though he wouldn’t mind staying a bit longer he just had to go home. After seeing this article online on ‘10 ways to surprise your significant other’ he had gotten the idea that preparing a big surprise for Yaku once he came back from work would be great, especially because he was sure his boyfriend would come home exhausted.

On his way to Yaku’s apartment, he bought everything he needed for his little surprise so when he got there his hands were so filled will bags that he took longer than usual to open the door.

And made quite a lot of noise.

He nearly dropped everything he was holding when the door suddenly opened by itself, a loud gasp escaping his lips and his heart only calming down when he saw that his boyfriend was standing right in front of him.

“Jesus…” He said with a sigh before putting on a wide smile despite the slight disappointment of not being able of doing his surprise that day. “You scared me baby, did you leave work earlier?”

“Yeah.” Morisuke’s tone was strangely uninterested and unlike all the other times when Lev would get home, he didn’t kiss him. Instead, he stood by the doorframe with his arms crossed and eyes focused on something on the floor. “Aren’t you going to come in?”

“O-oh uh… y-yeah…” Hesitantly Lev stepped into the apartment, taking off his sneakers with more care than usual.

After closing the door, Yaku walked further into the apartment and pointed at the bags he was carrying. “What’s that?”

“Just a few things.” He headed to the kitchen to place the bags over one of the counters, his heart pounding anxiously because of the odd atmosphere. In his mind he started going through his whole day just to see what he might have done wrong for Yaku to be acting so cold towards him.

“So…” Yaku suddenly said from the other side of the room, not even looking at his boyfriend. “Big tour coming up uh?”

He didn’t need to feel his heart sinking, yet he did.

He didn’t need to feel like giving Yaku excuses, yet he still did.

He didn’t need to feel like passing out, yet his head was getting strangely light.

Yaku must have seen right through him because the next thing that came out from his mouth was a scoff, followed by. “Aren’t you going to ask me how I know that?” But his throat became tied up, even though he was trying nothing would come out and he just stared at him with his eyes wide. “Don’t look at me like that and say something Lev.”

“W-who… who told you?” Though his voice broke he finally managed to speak up, but his body stood frozen.

“Just the last person I wanted to hear it from. I suppose you can guess who.” He saw Yaku walking out of his field of vision and his feet finally allowed him to move out of the kitchen. Yaku was walking around the living room looking for something, not even turning his attention to him when Lev walked in.

“But… how did he know?” Upon hearing his boyfriend asking that, adding to the frustration of not finding what he was looking for, Yaku slammed his fist angrily on one of the walls.

“You tell me Lev, how the fuck did Kuroo Tetsurou know that you and your band were going to the US? Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?” He was about to slam his fist again when he suddenly saw something, walking right across the room only to pick up his cigarette pack. Swiftly, he placed one of them between his lips and walked towards one of the windows, with a certain carelessness that was starting to get on Lev’s nerves.

“Look, I was going to tell you. I was planning on doing it soon.” He rose the tone of his voice a little, fearfully though since he was afraid of what kind of response that would bring from Yaku. “Why are you getting so angry?”

Morisuke just scoffed and patted his pockets in search for a lighter, holding the cigarette between two of his fingers for a while so he could speak. “When were you planning to tell me hm? Aren’t you going in a week?”

“I _was_ going to tell you.” This time he gathered his courage to walk up to his lover, frowning the moment he saw him lighting up his cigarette. “Can you please not do that? You know I hate it.”

Yaku snorted, “How the fuck are you going to live with a bunch of rockstars for a couple of months then?” Yet, he still pressed the tip of his cigarette against the ashtray without even taking a drag, then looking straight into Lev’s eyes. “I’m angry because I’m the last person to know about this, apparently. I feel like you don’t trust me for some fucking reason.”

“I do trust you, I told you already I was planning on telling you. I-“

“Then for how long do you know that you were going on tour hm?” Yaku interrupted and stepped closer to him, head tilted back slightly to maintain eye contact. “You didn’t hear about it this morning for sure.”

Though he parted his lips to speak, nothing came out again, and that obviously led to a snarky comment from Yaku.

“Can’t figure out what to say now huh? I’ll wait.”

Lev took a deep breath, he had been trying not to fight with Yaku but he realized that it was too late now, it was something that needed to happen. So the best thing he could do was to be honest, and without letting the other say anything else, the singer ran a hand through his messy gray hair and mumbled, “I was scared okay? I didn’t know how you would react to it…”

“What?” Yaku furrowed his brows. “Of course I’d be happy for you Lev, do you think I’d get angry at you for that? What kind of person do you think I am?”

“I’m scared of going okay?! I’m scared that when I’m gone you’re gonna realize that you don’t want to wait for me after all and break up with me.” Those couple sentences came out more aggressively than he had intended to, but at least they caused a reaction on his boyfriend. Yaku was staring at him with wide eyes and lips slightly parted, this time he was the one who was about to say something.

After a few seconds of painfully heavy silence, Yaku finally turned away and grabbed his cigarettes and his cellphone, heading towards the front door.

Lev stood there in shock, his mind telling him to stop him from leaving but his body didn’t move an inch. “W-where are you going?”

“For a smoke.” He just said while putting on his shoes. Lev could feel the heat of his tears pooling up in the corners of his eyes. “Don’t wait for me.”

He just wished he had the strength to run after his boyfriend, but the moment he saw him walking out of the apartment he felt his legs giving in and he broke out into a loud sob. Fear took over his body. Fear from not seeing Yaku coming back (though that was his apartment). Fear of him breaking up with him just because of this little fight. He thought about calling him or sending him a text, even going to the point of picking up his phone and typing his name in the contacts list, but he knew that it would be pointless.

So with teary eyes, he pressed his finger on top of someone else’s name and waited for them to answer the call, taking deep breaths so his sobbing would come to a halt.

 

* * *

 

His phone had constantly been buzzing ever since he left the apartment and he didn’t even need to check it to know that it was probably Lev asking him to return or to just talk to him. He decided to just ignore the buzzing and to continue his walk towards nowhere in particular, the noises from the city turning his thoughts into an unintelligible mess and the little things that he could grasp were anger, annoyance and the aggressive urge of smoking.

But eventually he stopped, he didn’t know exactly where he was but by the looks of the tall buildings around him he could tell that he was in a fancier part of the city. He was about to consider going back home when he felt his phone buzzing again, entering one of the buildings that had an advertisement for a rooftop bar in a rather aggressive way.

It took Yaku two glasses of beer and three cigarettes for him to finally calm down, sitting all by himself in one of the last tables, a few meters away from the rail. As he was pressing his cigarette against the ashtray to put it out, he felt his phone buzzing again and out of pure anger he pulled it out of his pocket. Much to his surprise it wasn’t Lev’s name he saw glowing on the screen, but Kuroo’s. He stood in shock for such a long time that he wasn’t even able of answering the phone in time, noticing that all his 20 something notifications were all from him, some were even from Kenma.

Opening his message inbox, he was struck with feelings of confusion and amusement, reading each one of them one by one just to try to understand what the hell was going on.

 

[ new message : Kuroo ] Yaku where are you now? Can we talk?

[ new message : Kuroo ] please answer we really need to talk

[ new message : Kuroo ] are you home? Can I come over?

[ new message : Kenma ] hey it’s Kuroo, please answer your phone I need to talk to you

 

As he was scrolling down the messages his phone suddenly started buzzing, it was Kuroo yet again trying to reach him. Yaku stared at the screen for a few seconds before dragging his finger across it, hesitantly placing his phone against his ear.

“Hello?”

“ _Oh thank god you finally answered…_ ” Kuroo said with a loud sigh. “ _I’ve been trying to talk to you for ages, why didn’t you answer_?”

Yaku leaned back against his chair and stared out the balcony at the building right in front of him. “I didn’t notice, sorry.”

“ _Anyway, can we meet up? I need to talk to you about something and it’s better if I do it in person. Where are you right now?”_

“Uh… some rooftop bar I found.”

“ _Some rooftop bar? Can you be a bit more precise?”_

With a sigh Yaku told the other of his whereabouts, pretending to sound awfully bored despite his curiosity about what the other was planning on telling him.

“ _Okay I’ll be there in ten. Don’t go anywhere okay?_ ”

“Yeah okay…”

“ _Okay see you_.”

“Bye.” Yaku turned off the call and placed his phone on the table, noticing how the sun was starting to set. Though he was in the middle of the city, he was still able of seeing the sky turning orange in a reflection on the building in front, and for some reason, to him, in that moment that was the most beautiful sight in the world. He got up from his seat and walked closer to the railings, staring at the building right across the street while lighting up a cigarette.

He felt like he had dragged himself into a mess that could have been avoided, maybe if he had just questioned Lev in a calmer manner they wouldn’t have even fought. Yaku had definitely let his temper get out of control and it managed to turn their rather peaceful relationship into a, or at least it was what he expected, a momentary mess. The lack of texts or calls from Lev only added more sparks to his anger, though he was sure that he wouldn’t even answer. Maybe it was because not getting anything from Lev meant that he too was too upset to talk to him, which was fair but at the same time annoying.

As he pressed his cigarette stub on the ashtray he heard the uncomfortable noise of someone breathing heavily behind him. In a split second the image of a desperate, panting Lev standing right behind him appeared in his mind and his heart fluttered with excitement. If it was indeed Lev then he was for sure not going to turn his head, he’d wait until he could hear his small voice calling for his name, just like it would happen in romantic comedies.

But of course, Yaku Morisuke’s life was not a romantic comedy.

“H-hey…” He never thought he’d come to the day where he’d hear Kuroo speaking in such a breathless way, so in surprise he turned around and faced him.

“Jesus…” He would have taken a step back if there wasn’t a metal railing behind him, because good lord Kuroo looked like a mess. Besides of having eye-bags so big that looked like they were pulling his face down, there was sweat dripping down his forehead and he had an inglorious pair of sweat stains on his expensive light blue shirt that he couldn’t take his eyes away from. “What the hell happened to you?”

The other male squinted his eyes a little and leaned closer to railing as well, taking a deep breath so he could calm down. “I had to run around looking for you for the whole afternoon. You shouldn’t leave people hanging like that man, that was fucking rude.”

“Sorry.” The tone that came out of Yaku’s mouth was that of an unsure one, glancing at the taller for a few seconds before staring down at the street.

“No need to, at least I finally found you.” After a final sigh Kuroo seemed to have calmed down, he too turning his attention to the street. “Anyway, I guess you and Lev uh…”

“Yeah.” The smaller mumbled, taking out another cigarette.

“Well shit.”

“Yeah…”

Both of them remained silent for a while, trying to think of what to say next because neither really knew what to do. Despite being a selfish asshole, Kuroo was still Yaku’s friend, the kind of friend that he wasn’t very fond of but still, he did feel like opening up to him a little. As for Kuroo, well, he was such a mess both mentally and physically that though he had spent the whole afternoon planning how to talk to Yaku he just didn’t know how to start.

“I uh… I have something to tell you Yaku.” He finally said, running a hand through his dark hair and regretting it right away due to his sweat.

“I’m listening.” The other had already lit up his cigarette, blowing the smoke forward with a sigh. “Just don’t ramble too much.”

Kuroo gave his bottom lip a tug with his teeth and sighed again. “Okay so uh… you remember Oikawa? I think you met him at that club uh… what was its name…”

“The Pit. Yeah I remember, what about him?”

“I don’t know how much Lev told you so I’ll just… yeah, say it right away I guess.” That earned a loud sigh from Yaku, who was already getting annoyed by the other’s slowness. “He’s the CEO of this record company and we’re like friends… more than friends actually, we’re uh I dunno exactly but yeah, doesn’t matter. Anyway, I told him about Tolstoi and I asked him if he could uh… give them a shot I guess.”

Yaku kept his eyes focused on Kuroo, trying to figure out where he was trying to get to with all that rambling despite his specific request not to do it.

“And as you know he did right? Now the thing is… I uh pulled some strings so things would work out for them, but in the most part it was Oikawa’s decision to sign them up in his company.” He wanted to be surprised by what Kuroo had just said, but the truth was that he wasn’t. Whenever something messy happened to him it just happened to be thanks to him, so technically he was the one to blame for the fight he had with Lev earlier.

But still, it was pretty confusing. Why would Kuroo go out of his way to help Yaku’s boyfriend’s band? Was it really a very weird attempt to annoy him or was is because of something else entirely?

“The thing is…” Before Yaku could say something Kuroo resumed talking, leaning back slightly and holding onto the rail with both his hands. “The reason why I knew about the tour was because I’m one of the sponsors, if not the only one. I gave Oikawa the money he needed to send them off to the US and all… I even talked to the other band about it to convince them.”

“... why?” Yaku mumbled, his brows furrowed slightly while giving a confused look at the taller.

Tetsurou pursed his lips together and let out a single chuckle, his eyes moving to the sky as if he was looking at something in particular. “Believe it or not, because I wanted to help you somehow. I wanted to make you happy and since I knew that if I did it blatantly you would probably tell me to fuck off, I decided to do it by helping your boyfriend instead.”

Yaku was so shocked that he found himself moving away from Kuroo, brown eyes shooting a glare at him as in the most disgusted and confused way he said. “Fuck, don't tell me you have a crush on me.”

“What?! Oh god, hell no!” His laugh was so loud and honest that made Yaku sigh in relief, having someone like Kuroo secretly crushing on him after all that time seemed scary. “I just wanted to do something nice for you since… well… we never really got along.”

“I wonder whose fault is it.”

“I know I know, but trust me when I say this, I changed. I’m not the same guy I used to be back in the day, I think in a way I kind of… grew up.” He heard his friend letting out a not so discreet snort and he chuckled, arching one of his brows as he turned his head to him. “No, no, I'm serious. I was a huge dick, I don’t know how you and Kenma stuck around to be honest.”

“Well I was there just for Kenma to be honest.” Though that could be interpreted in a mean way, Yaku said it with a kind smile that showed the other that he was just messing with him.

The two laughed together for a while before Kuroo spoke again, looking ominously worried. “I didn’t mean to make you mad, I thought I’d be doing a great thing by helping a bit.”

“Hm… I know.” The smile on Yaku’s face faded away and he shifted his eyes to the street, eyeing the cars that drove by. “To be honest I don’t really know what happened, I just… I don’t know, I might have anger issues or something.”

“What uh… happened with Lev?” Kuroo asked that in an almost whisper, watching as his friend’s expression turned darker with sadness and picked another cigarette from his pack. After placing it between his lips, he lifted said package in Kuroo’s direction which the latter refused politely with a gentle shake of his hand.

After taking the first drag of his smoke, Yaku let his eyelids fall shut and sighed. “We fought. When he came home I asked him why he didn’t tell me and he said something really… hurtful I guess.” He rose his eyes and saw Kuroo staring at him with a frown, almost as if he was begging for him to explain. “He said that he didn’t tell me about the tour because he was scared that I would want to break up with him, since he’s gonna be away for a while.”

“Oh… that’s…” The dark-haired male found himself sighing as well, staring into nothing as he tried to figure out what to say. “That’s shitty… did you ask him why he thinks like that?”

“No, I just left and told him not to wait for me to return. Which is even worse because I acted like an impulsive asshole instead of… trying to figure out what was going on.” Morisuke flicked his cigarette before taking another drag, blowing the smoke out as he spoke. “So… now I’m here. I’m still angry at him but I dunno… I think things could have gone better if I didn’t storm out.”

“Well leaving him after big a revelation is acting like an impulsive asshole Yaku, sorry for saying that.” He made sure that Yaku didn’t get offended by his comment before continuing, watching the smaller man as he shrugged. “I mean, he’s just a kid, he probably thought he was doing the right thing by not telling you. You should have talked to him about it or something…”

“You think I don’t know that now? I just… I got too angry at the time, I just wanted to be away from him for a while. But now thinking about talking to him… it just feels weird for some reason.” He once again sighed, leaning his elbows against the metal railing.

“What do you mean?”

“I have no idea Kuroo for some reason I just… I feel like these past few weeks happened too fast, like… my relationship with him happened too fast. I don’t regret it but I don’t feel one hundred percent sure about it either, you know what I mean? We’ve only been together for how long? A month and a few days? I’m far from knowing everything about Lev yet here we are, arguing as if we’ve been together for 10 years or something. Am I making any sense?”

“… uh no. Not really. But here’s the thing—“ Kuroo leaned closer to his friend, placing his arm around his shoulder hesitantly. “You two have been together for a month already, believe it or not fights were bound to happen and I think you know that better than I do. Are you sure it’s just that?”

Yaku found himself leaning against Kuroo’s touch, something that neither of the men really understood how it happened, but in the smaller’s defense he did drink quite a bit earlier. “Maybe? I… I don’t know…” His voice sounded small and unsure, which was as much as a rare thing as the sight two of them hugging. “I’m scared that we’re too different for things to work out, I guess. We don’t have that many things in common, we have a huge age gap… I’m afraid that when he leaves he’ll find someone more suitable an-“

“Holy fucking shit Yaku, you’re such a hypocrite.” That comment, that was followed by a stormy chuckle, made Yaku move away from him as quickly as he could. “You do realize that you’re having the same doubts Lev had, right? Dude…”

“I-I—no! It’s different! He didn’t want to tell me something because he was afraid I would break up with him for it, it’s completely different from what I’m saying…”

“Yeah yeah, whatever.” Kuroo snorted and patted his friend’s back twice. “I don’t know why you’re doubting yourself too much, both of you actually. As far as I can tell that boy is head over heels for you, I don’t think he’d have the balls to find someone else. Besides, if you two really were that incompatible don’t you think you would have fought more? Hell, knowing you I’m sure you wouldn’t even last two weeks together if you weren’t _compatible_.”

He wanted to talk back, but he found himself thinking about what he said while chewing on the inside of his cheek. Perhaps having similar tastes didn’t weigh as much in a relationship as he thought, well he should have gotten that conclusion earlier since all his past girlfriends liked the same things he did and their relationships didn’t last long.

“Man you gotta fix this before he leaves, you can’t stay mad over something as stupid as this.” Kuroo continued, moving away from the railing and running a hand through his hair. “Come on, I’ll drive you home.”

Yaku put out his cigarette and stared at the other for a while. “I can walk home.”

“Who said that was a suggestion?” The taller grabbed his car keys from his pocket and tossed them in the air only to catch them right after. “Now let’s go, I have stuff to do.”

“Oh yeah?” Yaku grabbed his things and walked towards the other with a smirk. “Who’s business are you gonna be meddling in now?”

“Believe it or not, mine.” The usual signature confident smirk appeared on Tetsurou’s face as he walked towards the elevator with the smaller.

 

* * *

  

It was for sure a very romantic picture that he had planned in his mind. He would open the door to his apartment, call for Lev’s name and hear nothing only to then find him crying by their bed. Then Yaku would profess his love for him and Lev would run to his arms, repeating over and over how much he loves him back and how he regretted everything that had happened.

That was, of course, just a fantasy, because when he opened the door to his apartment he wasn’t greeted by a sobbing, desperate Lev, but by darkness and silence. He called out his name quietly at first, as he removed his shoes, then trying calling out for him once again but in a louder tone. Morisuke walked throughout his small apartment hoping he would find him somewhere, even if it was in the bathroom.

But as he got to their bedroom he found the doors to their shared closet opened wide, the drawers where Lev would store his underwear pulled out and looking like a tornado had gone through them.

Reality hit him like a hard blow and he didn’t know if it was because of the alcohol he had drunk but all of the sudden he felt like the room was spinning. By the looks of it, it seemed like Lev had packed his bags and left, without saying anything.

For the first time in 10 years Yaku felt tears falling down his eyes. His heart tightened in such a way that he could almost feel it crumbling into pieces. Maybe that was the end, their relationship would be over because of a small fight. Without solving anything, they would just break apart. It was over.

No.

He wasn’t going to let that happen.

 

* * *

 

The first thing his sister did after he explained what had happened with his boyfriend was to pull him into her arms and give him the tightest hug he had even been given. Then she insisted on him staying over at her apartment for a while until he’d cleared his mind and figured out what to do with his relationship. It had been a long time since he’d seen her, so even if she was exaggerating a bit, Lev didn’t mind. Spending some time with his older sister would do him good surely.

He had lost the track of time, living each day at the time. Maybe it was because living with his sister would allow him to act less like an adult, but he found that in the days that followed the fight he had been able to finally relax. Besides of having a sort of motherly attitude towards him, his older sister was an amazing cook, so good in fact that Lev could feel his cheeks recovering the baby fat that he had worked so hard in losing. His daily schedule was waking up whenever he felt like it, eating the breakfast his sister would leave for him before going to work, going to his band’s rehearsals when it was time, and then doing whatever he pleased.

However, the easy-goingness of his new lifestyle failed at doing one of the things his sister had advised him to do: forget about Yaku. When he told Alisa about their fight, besides of the tight warm hug that she gave him, she also tried to convince him that it would be better if he forgot about his boyfriend. The thing was, he didn’t want to forget him, hell he didn’t even want to break up with him. As far as he could tell he was still as crazy for Yaku as he was in the beginning, the only problem was that he had forgotten to do one of the most important things in a relationship, to be honest with his boyfriend. He understood why his sister gave him that advice, though she accepted his orientation her over-protectiveness made her suspicious of every romantic interest Lev would have. In her eyes, all of Lev’s flings or boyfriends were either dirty old men or perverted nymphomaniacs. And since all she knew about Yaku was the least pleasant part of him, she had already painted the kind of picture that turned him into an evil human being.

It wasn’t her fault though, she just wanted her brother to be happy.

But the problem was that he wasn’t happy at all. Well, he was happier than he was a few days ago, but being away from the man he loved for that long was really bringing him down. He wanted to call him and apologize to him, but he had promised his sister that he wouldn’t touch his phone while he was staying over, because she didn’t want to catch him crying when she came home from work because of that man. Lev knew that he wasn’t exactly forbidden to turn on his phone, but after spending two days without paying any attention to it he started getting scared of it. Scared that if he did turn on his phone he wouldn’t find any messages or missed calls from his boyfriend, that he would just be greeted by an empty inbox and spam emails. That state of uncertainty was beyond uncomfortable, but he couldn’t gather his courage to get out from it.

It had been 6 days since the fight and Tolstoi was getting ready to go on tour. Everyone seemed to be more than excited about it, his bandmates, who already were the definition of hyperactivity, could barely stay still during their last practice in Tokyo. Even Hinata, who had just gotten the news that he wouldn’t be able of coming with them, was beaming with happiness and excitement. Lev was the only one who wasn’t, though, and that showed in his performance.

What was considered to be his greatest charm when he was performing, his cheekiness and good energy, seemed to be gone. And when they practiced the song he had written for his lover he would find himself lost in his thoughts and missing his cues over and over. Thankfully, everyone was very comprehensive and patient with him, even Iwaizumi was in such high spirits that evening that rare were the seconds when he wasn’t smiling widely. Lev wanted to share their happiness, but the fact that he would be leaving the country without talking one last time to Yaku was eating him from the inside.

Everyone was surprised after practice when Lev’s sister arrived with a couple of bags filled with takeout food she had just gotten on her way there, immediately turning their attention to the grey-haired beauty. She greeted everyone enthusiastically, trying her best not to pay any attention to the cheesy comments that Taketora was doing about her appearance, and soon found her way to her lonely younger brother.

“ _Lyovochka_ , I got you your favourite~” She rose the last plastic bag she had in her hands and smiled widely at him. “I thought it would be a good idea to treat the boys tonight, it’s so nice to see everyone so happy.”

Lev carefully took the plastic bag from her hands and removed the container and the wooden chopsticks that were inside. “Hm it was a good idea yeah.”

A frown appeared in Alisa’s features and she wrapped her arm around his broad shoulders. “Still thinking about that guy? Lyovochka… you know he-“

“No, I don’t know anything. And neither do you, Alisa.” Both of them were shocked with Lev’s snarky response. Alisa moved her arm away from her brother with a sigh and stared at the floor without saying anything. “Sorry…”

“No it’s okay Lev. You know I’m only trying to keep you from getting hurt right? The last thing I want is to see you with a broken heart.” Her voice was leveled and cautious, being even hard to hear with all the noise the others were making.

Lev picked on his food and sighed as well. “I know, I just… I don’t know what to do… I miss him so much.”

As Alisa was about to say something, she was suddenly interrupted by the sight of a short young man appearing in the practice room’s door. He was panting, looking around frantically until his eyes landed on her brother.

“Lev…” The young man said almost breathless, surprising Lev in such a way that he even dropped his container on the floor as he sprung up from his seat.

“Yaku?! I-I-what are y-“

“Oh thank god I finally found you…”

 

* * *

 

 For 5 whole days Yaku ran around like a maniac trying to track down his boyfriend. After coming home to an empty apartment, he spent the next 24 hours trying to reach Lev’s phone, but he would always end up in voicemail and his texts never seemed to go through. In the days that followed he tried reaching Lev’s bandmates, but it was always in vain since they all seemed too busy to talk to him and gave him nothing but cold shoulders.

Eventually he had to ask Kuroo to do what he did best, which wasn’t as easy as it used to since he had decided to quit his old ways. But after hours and hours of insisting, Yaku finally managed to convince him to do something, what exactly? He had no idea. But when he heard the dark-haired male telling him not to worry and that he would call him as soon as he knew anything he was finally able of sighing in relief.

In less than an hour he received a text from Kuroo with an address followed by a ‘You’re welcome’ which was his own way of saying ‘Can’t talk now’. Without even thinking twice about it, Yaku typed the address he had been given onto the GPS feature of his phone and went on his way.

He had practiced all that time what he was planning on telling Lev, he had even written a list of all the topics he wanted to address and read it often throughout the day just so he wouldn’t forget anything.

He was ready to take the man he loved back in his arms.

Or at least that was what he was planning.

When he saw Lev sitting with a girl that strangely looked a lot like him, it was like his body froze. The speech he had been preparing vanished from his memory and the only thing that made him wake up from the odd anxious trance he got in was the noise of Lev’s food container falling on the floor.

“Lev…” He said in between his pants, ignoring how everyone else in the room was looking at him.

He looked as cute as ever, specially with his green eyes wide open as he stared at him. “Yaku?! I-I-what are y-“

“Oh thank god I finally found you.” He said with a sigh, pressing two of his fingers against the bridge of his nose. “I… I wanted to talk to you, if that was okay.”

The girl that was sitting beside his boyfriend suddenly rose and stared at him with crossed arms, looking like she had something to say but waiting for the right time. But his eyes couldn’t move away from the half-russian man that seemed to be walking closer to him, waiting impatiently for his response.

“Y-yeah we can talk.”

He found himself standing in a dim lit room with Lev, the faint noise of people talking filling up the awkward silence that had taken over the two of them. Yaku knew that deep in his mind he would find the speech he had prepared, but the more he tried to remember the more awkward the situation would get so eventually he decided to just say. “I’m sorry… about everything. Really.”

“N-no! I should be the one apologizing.” Lev said with a sigh, leaning back against one of the walls. “I should have told you about the tour as soon as I heard about it, I was stupid for not telling you right away. And for saying uh… that… you know, the thing about me being scared and yeah.”

“Yeah, you should have told me but I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that either. I lost my temper and acted like an asshole for no reason.” Chewing on the inside of his bottom lip, Yaku too leaned against the wall and stared straight into Lev’s eyes. “I… I had the same doubts as you actually, when you told me about the tour I thought you didn’t trust me enough and honestly the first thing that popped up in my mind was that while you were gone you’d find someone better than me.”

Yaku interpreted the silence that followed as Lev trying to figure out what to say, this time his eyes drifting away from the taller man’s form and focusing on what appeared to be a broken chair standing on the opposite corner of the room. Seeing as he didn’t seem to know what to say, Morisuke decided to break the silence once again, with a broken chuckle.

“It’s so cliché, isn’t it?”

“What?” Lev asked, his tone showing a certain nervousness.

“Miscommunication bringing two characters apart.” Yaku beamed a lopsided smile and moved slightly away from the wall. “It’s the most common way to create drama in a story and it’s probably the most annoying one.”

“Oh…” Surprisingly, the taller let out a quiet snicker. “That’s such a Yaku Morisuke thing to say.”

“W-what do you mean by that?” In a playful manner, he stepped closer to him, one of his brows shooting up as a smirk etched on his lips.

“Only Yaku Morisuke would say something as nerdy as that.” Lev stepped closer to the smaller until their bodies were about to touch. “I really missed you.”

He took a deep breath and stood on the tip of his toes so he could wrap his arms around Lev’s neck. “I missed you too.”

In a matter of seconds the two men were kissing each other in that suspicious dark room, their lips curled into smiles that were too hard to contain. With a soft snicker, Yaku began pecking his boyfriend repeatedly until he earned an adorable chuckle from him.

“How about we go back to my place?” He suggested with a cheeky smile, running one of his hands through Lev’s messy hair.

“Sounds cool. I have to tell my sister first, though. And get my things from her apartment later.” He leaned against his boyfriend’s touch with a gentle smile.

“Your sister? You mean—oh my god that’s your sister?”

“Yep, I’ve been staying at her place since we… yeah.” He pulled away from the other and walked closer to the door, visibly eager to leave the tight little space. “I should introduce you to her.”

Yaku walked closer to Lev and took a deep breath. “Uh yeah sure.”

“Don’t worry too much about it, she doesn’t hate you _that_ much.” The taller stepped out of the small room with a smirk, turning his head back to Yaku when he heard him scoffing.

“Great…”

 

* * *

 

It was quite a difficult task to unlock a door when one was busy sharing a passionate kiss with their lover, especially since there was a very obvious sense of eagerness that loomed on them. Yaku was trying to balance his keys in his hand while Lev proceeded kissing any patches of his bare skin that were visible, and knowing that most of them were located in sensitive parts of his body, Yaku simply could not manage to focus on putting his key into the door lock. Luckily, and mostly due to the fact that he was starting to lose his temper with how long they were taking to get in his apartment, the smaller managed to get away from his boyfriend’s grip for a few seconds just so he could unlock the door.

The minutes, no, seconds that followed were rushed, messy, and kind of sloppy, since the two young men were trying to remove their shoes while keeping their lips attached to one another. They both knew that if they pulled away for a bit that they would be able of doing things much faster, but it was simply more fun to do things that way. In between those sloppy kisses they giggled into each other’s lips, both nearly falling since they almost lost their balance, and that was what made that whole situation somewhat magical.

“God I missed you.” Lev said almost breathless as he dragged his lips to the curve of Yaku’s jaw.

“You’re repeating yourself.” The other replied with a snicker, his small arms settling over the taller’s shoulders.

“I’m sorry, I can’t help it.” In a swift motion, Lev managed to pick his boyfriend from the floor, his hands gripping onto his thighs in a firm yet gentle manner. “I’m so happy.”

He didn’t enjoy being picked up like that, mostly because it was a strong reminder of how short he was compared to Haiba Lev, but seeing as how happy he was he decided not to complain. “Idiot.”

 

There had never been such a sense of urgency between them like now. Lips and hands were moving hungrily across each other’s bodies in a passionate way that seemed to be happening in a split second. Desperate, hoarse moans would escape their mouths when the other would touch or nip at a certain spot, and their bodies were nearly boiling.

Yaku’s heart was throbbing like it had never did, it was quick, furious, excited and anxious for what was about to happen. They didn’t even need to tell each other how they wanted things to go, it was just happening in the same pace as in most porn videos.

Fast. With barely any preparation. A little painful.

But so warm and loving at the same time.

It ended up with both of them panting over the bed’s covers, bodies covered in a sheen coat of sweat. Though he was equally as breathless as his lover, Yaku ended up being the first one to speak.

“I’m never letting you fuck me like that again. It was hot but I swear to god I won’t be able of walking properly for the rest of the week.”

Lev’s voice broke into a weak little chuckle as he turned sideways to face his lover. “You weren’t complaining earlier.”

The hazel-haired man’s brows furrowed a little and he inhaled deeply. “Don’t act like a fuckboy now, you’re ruining the moment.”

“Sorry babe.” To make up his not-so-genius remark, Lev shifted closer to the other and wrapped his arm loosely around his middle. “Are you feeling okay though? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“Hm, just a bit, but don’t worry about it.” Before the other would start complaining on how Yaku should have told him about the pain, he leaned in and pressed a soft, gentle peck against his lips. “I can’t believe you’re leaving tomorrow… how are you feeling? Excited?”

He felt his heart sinking when Yaku asked that, though at the same time he could feel it throbbing in excitement. Morisuke, however, was quick to rid the sudden change of expression that happened on his boyfriend’s face, though he waited for Lev to talk first before speaking his mind.

“In a way, yeah. But I don’t know.” A sad, forced chuckle came out of his lips then and Yaku felt like there was something tugging on his chest. “I was worried sick the whole week just thinking about you, I didn’t even care if I was going to the States or not. I just wanted things to be okay between us and now that they are I just… I don’t know, I feel like I should be happier than I am.”

With a low hum, Yaku turned to his boyfriend and brushed his hand against his soft cheek. “Oh Lev…” He frowned when he saw that there were tears falling down his green eyes now, his thumb moving immediately to wipe it from his fair skin.

“I just… I-I’m gonna miss you so much.” He placed his long fingers on top of Yaku’s hand and let out a loud sniffle. “If not seeing you for a week was unbearable already I can’t even imagine how’s it gonna be for months.”

“Hey now…” Morisuke felt the need to move even closer to him, close to the point he could wrap his arms around his head. “We were fighting back then, things were different. Think of the opportunities this tour’s gonna give you Lev, isn’t that what you always wanted?”

“Yeah but..”

“If you’re worried about me finding someone else while you’re away you can get your mind out of the gutter now, because that’s not gonna happen.” Yaku said quickly, though he was afraid his voice had come out a little sterner than he expected. “Even if it takes a whole year for you to return, as long as you give me a reason to, I will wait for you okay? I can’t think of being with anyone else, Lev, I love you.”

A gentle smile appeared on Lev’s lips and he sniffled once more, bringing his hands to his eyes so he could wipe them off. “It’s so nice to hear you saying those things. You can be so sweet sometimes.”

“Well, I can be a huge bitch sometimes too I know.” Yaku pulled away and parted his arms. “C’mere.”

It was always so overwhelming to be hugged by Lev, even if he knew that admitting that would give away the fact that he was getting over his height complex. But feeling his long limbs around his body just felt so nice and cozy, he would definitely miss those hugs.

“So unless you fall for some hot American stud you’re not getting rid of me. Hell, even if you do I don’t think I’ll let you go that easily.” That earned a laugh from Lev that could send Yaku to the moon with how adorable it was.

They spent the rest of the night lazing around in bed, naked, laughing and talking about things that had happened to them during that never-ending week. They laughed over Alisa’s over-bearing concern about Yaku, about the text Yaku had gotten from his mother that said that she didn’t mind who he loved, that the only thing that she cared about was his happiness and how she was sorry for not behaving better than she did. They would take the occasional break to go to the bathroom or to grab some snacks from the kitchen, but time went by and they just wouldn’t get tired of chatting.

After Lev had come back from the kitchen in all his naked glory with a cup of instant noodles in his hand, Yaku sat up on the bed and fiddled with the hem of the bedsheets. “When’s your flight tomorrow?”

The half-russian slurped on a bunch of noodles and walked towards the bed so he could sit beside his lover, speaking with his mouth full. “10:30 I think.”

“In the morning?” He watched Lev nod his head and he let out a sigh. “We should probably get some sleep then.”

Lev shook his head so enthusiastically that he nearly dripped some of the broth of his noodles onto the bedsheets, then saying in a determinate way. “I want to spend as much time with you as I want so, sleep will have to wait.”

“What?” He was surprised by how straightforward the other had been. “You’re gonna be a wreck tomorrow though, are you sure?”

“A hundred perfent.” He said right after slurping in some more of his noodles, then swallowing them quickly so he could speak properly. “If that’s okay with you.”

With a smile Yaku let his body slide down slowly onto the bed. “Yeah I’m game if you are.”

Another hour passed and by then it was already 4 in the morning. Lev was hovering beside Yaku, his elbows sustaining his torso so he could be looking at him as his small hands played mindlessly with his gray locks. They were no longer talking but rather looking at each other lovingly, almost as if they were speaking to each other through their minds. Silence would be broken by the sound of their lips kissing each other, Lev would lean down, and it was when Yaku wrapped his arms firmly around his neck during one of those kisses that their voices were finally heard.

“Lev…” Yaku whispered, pushing his tongue past his lover’s lips and coaxing him into a deeper kiss. A switch was flicked inside Lev’s mind because as soon as he heard him saying his name so deliciously he melted into that deep kiss.

Soon Yaku was on top of Lev, leaving a trail of kisses and nips on his neck while his large hands travelled to places of his small body that he was already acquainted with. He opened his eyes just a little so he could watch his boyfriend’s face as he nipped on a particular spot right below his collarbone, and as he expected Lev let out a quiet little noise that made his heart race.

“Yaku… please…” His voice gave away how needy he was already and Yaku couldn’t help but chuckle. His lips, however, did not cease teasing that spot, which led Lev to arch his back and whine. After leaving a gentle lick on his skin, Yaku made his way back to Lev’s lips by pressing a trail of kisses on his neck, and as they were kissing he felt something poking his thigh. A smirk appeared on his lips and he pulled back just so he could look at Lev’s face, that was sporting a very adorable pink blush. “Can I…?”

“Yes please… _fuck_.” That last part came out of the singer’s mouth when he felt Yaku wrapping his fingers slowly around his now hardened member. A series of shy whine-like noises kept coming from him the more Morisuke worked on him and that was too about to send him off the edge.

Unlike earlier, the atmosphere was less rushed, though it was equally as passionate. Yaku decided to restrain himself from being too impulsive and carefully made sure that Lev wouldn’t get hurt during the process, his fingers slipping in and out of the young man’s entrance while he nipped on the skin beneath his ear. The noises that were coming out of his lips were no longer as contained as the ones before, but less shy and even rather loud. Yaku couldn’t move his eyes away from how beautifully his face was contorting with every single motion of his fingers, how his lips were slightly redder and parted just enough for his moans not to sound strained.

It took Lev quite a lot of begging for Yaku finally giving up on preparing him and going straight to business, but one could only be that careful and the last thing he wanted was to hurt his boyfriend. Seeing how easily undone he had become with his ministrations, Yaku could only imagine how he would get when he finally did it, and in a matter of seconds he finally saw it.

The noise that left Lev’s lips when he felt his boyfriend entering him was beyond belief, never in the other times he bottomed he had let out such a sound and Yaku was going to make sure that that wasn’t the first and the last one he made. With his lips attached to his, the man started thrusting into his boyfriend in a slow and steady rhythm, he too unable of keeping his moans in. Lev’s ridiculously long legs were parted so they wouldn’t get in the way, but still they were positioned in the right way just so Yaku could graze his nails onto their soft skin, just like his lover liked.

He forced his eyes to stay open just so he could look at the pretty sight underneath him, quiet groans coming out from his lips along with every single buck of his hips. Lev too opened his eyes so he could look at his boyfriend, a small smile lighting up his flushed face when he saw how focused Yaku looked, and then, in a soft, reassuring voice, he said. “You can be rougher if you want to.”

Yaku suddenly blinked his eyes fully open and looked at other surprised. “Y-you sure?” Just so he could convince him, all that left Lev’s mouth were slightly louder moans, that quickly worked on him. He picked up the pace of his thrusts, gripping onto Lev’s hips and letting his eyes fall shut as he became more focused on making both of them feel good.

When he heard a series of whines coming from Lev, and already knowing what they meant, Yaku leaned down and pressed a rather sloppy kiss on his lips, feeling Lev’s nails digging onto his skin. The sharp feeling on his skin set something ablaze in him and almost automatically he started rolling his hips even faster, his head becoming lighter the more he moved into the other.

However, as much as he wanted to listen to Lev’s request and be a little rough on him, the thought that maybe that was the last time they were going to sleep together for a while made him suddenly slow down. Yaku wanted to make sure that moment lasted as long as possible, because god knows if they would even have enough stamina to do it before it was time to take Lev to the airport. So, he leaned over Lev once more and pressed a gentle kiss on his forehead.

“What is it baby?” Lev’s eyes open slowly after he felt the kiss, his hands resting behind Yaku’s neck and brushing the ends of his short hair.

“Nothing I just… I was thinking how I don’t want this moment to end.” Yaku mumbled, noticing the growing smile on Lev’s face. “God that was so fucking cheesy, you’re ruining me Haiba Lev.”

Lev’s sweet chuckle echoed throughout the room. “But I love it when you say cheesy stuff, it gets my panties in a bunch.” Yaku snorted and dropped his head on the crook of the taller’s head, but he continued. “Don’t get shy now, your dick’s still inside me.”

With a chuckle Yaku resumed his movements, lips grazing against the skin on Lev’s neck and pressing the lightest kisses. Soon, their lips met once again and their bodies melted into each other, hands and arms gripping tighter against warm, damp skin as tension started to rise again. Though he was moving his hips in a slower way, he still managed to reach that certain spot inside Lev that made the latter become undone, his moans once again becoming the only thing that resonated through the bedroom.

In that sweet and slow manner, the two young men reached their release, bodies collapsing against each other in a strange heated tiredness. After gathering enough strength to move away, Yaku slid out from Lev’s body and laid right beside him, eyes still fully shut as his breath became even. He soon felt Lev’s careful hands rubbing his hips and a contempt hum left the back of his throat.

“I love you so much, Mori.” The younger whispered, almost as if he was telling a secret.

When he opened his eyes, he felt so thankful for having someone like Lev laying by his side, his usual messy gray hair had reached yet a new level of messiness, his eyes had a glossy, tired shine to them. In other words, Lev just looked too adorable to be real. “I love you too.” He rose one of his hands to have a feel of the puffiness that was his lover’s hair, smiling when he saw him closing his eyes. “We should seriously get some sleep now though, you look tired.”

“Nah I’m just a bit dazed from sex.” Still, his mouth went slowly wide and he let out a loud sigh. “Don’t worry.”

“Mhm, you really are a kid aren’t you?” Morisuke flicked the tip of his lover’s tiny nose and watched him flinch.

“Hey I’ll be turning 19 soon.” Lev pouted, holding Yaku even tighter against himself.

“That’s right…” He let the other hug him and sighed, feeling something tugging on his heartstrings once again. “You’re probably still in America by then.” He could tell that Lev’s mood had dropped a little as well by the way he slumped in Yaku’s arms. “But we can celebrate when you come back, right?”

“Hm we can.” Lev mumbled, raising his head so he could look straight into his eyes. “It’s gonna be in a long time though, isn’t it?”

Yaku didn’t say anything then, he didn’t really need to. He just stared at his bedroom’s ceiling, aware that his attempt of bringing the mood up had failed completely. It was pointless to pretend for now that they were happy, in a few hours the two would have to part and it didn’t matter whether they were in a good mood or not. The best thing to do was just to embrace the fact that they were both feeling sad and anxious, quit the positive façades and just let them be honest with themselves.

A sigh escaped Lev’s lips once again and he nuzzled more against his boyfriend. “We really should sleep, shouldn’t we?”

Yaku turned his head back to him and brought one of his hands to cup his cheek, then pressing a gentle kiss against his lips. He was planning for it to only be a light peck, but Lev made sure that their lips remained linked for longer. They kissed until they fell asleep doing it.

And when they did, they didn’t let go of each other.

When the alarm rang the morning next day he heard Lev whine just like he usually would, and he almost automatically turned it off, just like he usually would. But as he sat up on the bed, Yaku felt like there was something heavy pulling him back to the bed. While in most mornings Lev would go back to sleep, that day he was too sitting up on the bed. _He’s excited_ , Yaku thought as he made his way to the bathroom.

It seemed to be a typical morning, except after they took a shower and had breakfast, they got things ready for the airport. While his boyfriend would throw his clothes rather recklessly to the bed, Yaku would fold them neatly and place them inside a suitcase, complaining how Lev should learn how to pack properly otherwise he wouldn’t be considered an adult. Lev just laughed.

“If I learn how to pack properly then you won’t help me anymore.” He said, the cheeky smile on his face too adorable for Yaku to get mad.

In less than an hour they would have to leave Yaku’s apartment, so they didn’t take long to pack Lev’s things. With the 15 minutes they had left, they kissed in almost every single corner of the small apartment, they joked around with how they were going to find hotter boyfriends while they were apart, they laughed together and tried to forget the eminent sadness.

On their way to the airport they reassured each other how they would always be thinking about them in quiet whispers on the backseat of a taxi. As they were getting closer, they held hands and said nothing since nothing else could be said.

It was when they finally met Lev’s bandmates in the airport that Yaku realized how good it would be for his boyfriend to go on that tour. He watched him talk to the other men with an excited look on his face, so intently in fact that he didn’t even notice that one of his exes was there holding onto the arm of Tolstoi’s main guitarist.

When Lev lifted his head and beamed that big, toothy, idiotic grin to him Yaku was sure that whatever would happen while he was away nothing would change the way he felt about him.

After all, Lev was his idiot emo half-russian boyfriend.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading this! thank you to everyone who waited patiently for the chapters to be published, i know i took a long time to write this and i'm not proud of myself but still !!!!!! thanks !!! 
> 
> [ EDIT 15/8/2017 ]
> 
> i was planning on posting a kurodai fic to complete the series but unfortunately i had a bad case of writer's block and i just couldn't stand writing that story anymore... i might post it someday but until then brevity will be a solo work


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